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iilE 



LIFE OF JOHN KALB 



MAJOR-GENERAL IN THE R'EVOLUTIONARY ARMY. 



BY 



FRIEDRICH KAPP. 



In Deiner Brust sind Deines 
Schicksals Sterne. Schlllxb, 




,,<r^y OF COVgo>x 
'JUN,8S1884 ' 

Of vVASHl^ 



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NEW YORK 
HENRY HOLT AND COIMPANY 

1884 



LZof 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, In the year 18T0, 

By FRIEDEICH KAPP, 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Unit«d States for the 
Southern District of Now York. 



PREFACE 



Congress having on February 19th, 1883, passed the reso- 
lution to carry out the vote of OctobL-r 14th, 1780, to erect at 
Annapolis a monument in honor of General Kalb, I find the 
moment propitious to prepare for publication a book which 
I have long had by me. Besides I prefer publishing my re- 
searches in my own name to running the risk of seeing them 
adopted by others who do not even condescend to mention 
the source from which they have drawn their information. 

I do not consider it out of place to submit this work to 
the American reader, as the necessary sequel to the life of 
Frederick William von Steuben, published in 1859. 
Kalb and Steuben taken together complete the design I 
had in view of detailing the participation of German 
generals in the establishment of American independence. 
Both of these men were noble specimens of the race from 
which they sprung, and under the most unfavorable au- 
spices they have unfolded some of its finest qualities. 

What first led me to an inquiry into Kalb's personal 
history was the mysterious twilight in which his memory 
was shrouded. Even the orthography of his name was un- 
certain. Some write it Kalbe, others Colbe, still others 
Kalb ; Mr. Bancroft names Alsace as his native land, 
while Lord Stormond, the English ambassador, assigns him 
to Switzerland. The year of his birth varied between 1717 
and 1732; one authority credits his military antecedents to 
the Prussian, another to the Austrian, a third to the French 
array. The French employed him as a secret political 
agent, the Americans occasionally took him for a French 



iv PEEFACE 

spy, and even in the revolutionary war his appearance is 
meteoric, for he is rarely or never mentioned up to the 
moment of his heroic death on the field of Camden. Thus 
his image hovered in a romantic haze of the most opposite 
probabilities, all the more attractive by its contrast to the 
biography of Steuben, for whicli all the materials were 
found ready cut and dried with true Prussian exactitude. 
It affords me pleasure to say that my researches soon dis- 
pelled the mystery, and were rewarded with a very gratify- 
ing crop of historical discoveries, drawn from sources of 
which but one or two were previously known to the curious. 
One word as to these fountain-heads. While at Wash- 
ington in 1856, I was accidentally fortunate in making the 
acquaintance of John Carroll Brent, Esquire, who had for 
years represented the family of Kalb as their solicitor at 
the bar of Congress. To his kindness I am indebted for 
the address of the Viscountess d'Alzac, ofMilon la Chapellc, 
Department Seine et Oise, the grand-daughter of Kalb, who 
is in possession of his posthumous writings. On preferring 
to this lady a request for permission to inspect and, if nec- 
essary, to copy the papers of her grandfather, I was favor- 
ed with a letter from Mr. I. Nachtmann, a Polish refugee 
in consequence of the revolution of 1831. This gentleman, 
long in relations of intimacy with the family d'Alzac, had 
himself conceived the design of writing a life of Kalb, based 
upon the materials there at hand. He had progressed down 
to the year 1775, producing a work which followed implicit- 
ly the Milon authorities, less remarkable, perhaps, for dis- 
crimination than for completeness in details. A corre- 
spondence of several years resulted in the purchase by me of 
Mr. Nachtmann's MS., accompanied by copies of all papers 
of the general then in the possession of the family. It is 
hardly necessary to say that without these papers, and 
especially without Mr. Nachtmann's carefully prepared 
draught, it would have been impossible for me to liave ac- 



PEEFACE V 

complished anything like a coherent narrative of Kalb's 
life and fortunes. 

In citing these authorities I have designated them as 
Kalb's MSS. adding the name of ^•J^achtmann" up to the 
concluding point of that gentleman's labors, and adding 
'^Milon la Chapelle," for the remaining period which extends 
from 1776 to 1780. The latter were comparatively sterile, 
because Kalb's numerous letters from America mainly relate 
to matters of personal or domestic interest, and but rarely 
touch upon public affairs and military movements; they were, 
however, of great value in enabling me to fix dates and locali- 
ties with undoubted accuracy. 

To Mr. George Bancroft I am under special obligations 
for the loan of the principal papers respecting Kalb's first 
journey to America. The evidences of Kalb's birth and ex- 
traction I owe to the kindness of my friend, Professor K. L. 
Aegidi, now professor at Bonn, and the obliging assistance 
of the Reverend Mr. Recknagel, pastor of Kirchenaurach, 
Consistorial Councilor Dr. George Kapp, of Munich, and 
Mr. Philip Feust, then of Erlangen, now lawyer at Fiirth. 
My friend, M. Louis Tribert, of Paris, supplied me with 
some valuable data from the papers of the ministry of war, 
and, long after I had renounced all hope of further dis- 
coveries, my friend, Mr. John Bigelow, then American Con- 
sul in the last-named city, discovered, in the archives of the 
same ministry, no less than thirty letters and documents of 
Kalb's, of which he had the goodness to procure copies for 
me. In this disinterested act of friendship he received, at 
the hands of M. Blondel, the custodian of these archives, 
that courteous assistance which has always distinguished 
the officials of the French government. 

The libraries of the Historical Societies at New York and 
Baltimore contain very valuable documents. In the latter 
city the manuscript papers of General Gist, as well as other 
writings, cited in tlic course of the work, turned out to be 



VI PREFACE 

extremely productive. In New York the papers of General 
Gates were particularly rich in materials, and of incalcula- 
ble value for my purposes. The librarians of these institu- 
tions, Mr. George H. Moore here, and Mr. A. M. Rogers of 
Baltimore, aided my efforts with their accustomed kindness. 

All these gentlemen are requested to accept my heartfelt 
thanks for the friendship thus extended. 

In the office of the Secretary of State at Washington I 
had no difficulty in obtaining the consent of General Cass to 
my taking copies of letters and documents relating to the 
subject of this memoir. Under the administration of Mr. 
Seward, several excerpts from a volume containing the De 
Kalb and the Du Coudray papers were withheld from me 
on the ground that they were deemed not relevant to my 
subject. A written demonstration to the contrary, which I 
furnished, received no attention. On the whole, no change 
has taken place in the narrow-minded jealousy with which 
the revolutionary documents are guarded in Washington, 
anymore than in the neglected early education of the gentle- 
men who guard them. The unsophisticated views of these 
worthy functionaries on matters of historical interest are 
without a parallel in the present century. 

The following correspondence took place between the 
State Department and myself in relation to this subject. 

Department of State, ) 
Washington, December 11, 1861. f 
Friedrich Kapp, Esq., 122 Broadway, New York. 

Sir: It is understood that you have recently made application for 
copies of certain invoices among the Du Coudray papers on file in 
this Department, for the purpose of throwing hght on a Life of the 
Baron de Kalb, which you propose to publish. As no connection can 
be discovered between the papers requested and the proposed Life of 
De Kalb, you are informed that such copies will not be allowed to be 
taken unless you can offer a sufficient explanation in this regard. 
I am your obedient servant, 

.F. W. Seward, Assistant Secretary. 



PREFACE VU 

To which letter I replied as follows: 

New York, December Vuh, 1861. 
Hon. F, W. Seward, Assistant Seo-etary of State, Washington. 

Sir: In reply to your favor of the 11th iust., refusing me the use 
of the Du Coudray Papers, on the rolls of your Department, unless I 
can offer a sufficient explanation, that they have a connection with 
the Life of Baron De Kalb, which I am now writing, I beg to say 
that Du Coudray was a French officer, who, with the knowledge of 
the French government, intended to come over to the United States 
in company with Baron De Kalb, and was charged with the ship- 
ment of several invoices of ammunition, goods and cannon, in aid of 
the Colonies. 

As it is one of the essential points in my biography of De Kalb to 
elucidate the part taken by the French government in the American 
struggle of independence, you will see at once, the bearing of those 
papers upon my subject. I cannot establish my proofs without 
reference to those identical invoices contained in the Du Coudray 
Papers. 

Another point is the action taken by Beaumarchais, who, in his 
desire of vindicating to himself exclusively the honor of having pro- 
cured French e:oods and money in aid of the Revolution, made an 
attack both upon Du Coudray and De Kalb, as well as afterwards 
upon the Washington government, which he accused of fraud and 
false dealings to all Europe. To refute such charges is not only in 
the interest of my work, but of the fair fame of this Republic. If the 
above information should not prove sufficient to overcome the con- 
scientious scruples of your department, respecting the connection 
between the life of one of the revolutionary heroes, and the light 
thrown upon the action of the French government in that revolution, 
by the Du Coudray Papers, I beg to refer your clerks to WiUard, 
Lossing, or Wilson, or almost any school-book on American History. 
Such being the case, your reply upon my application evinces, allow 
me to say, a gross ignorance prevailing in your department with 
regard to the elementary knowledge of the history of this country. 
The department might have avoided such exposure, if there had been 
good sense and literary breeding enough to know that every historian 
of character and responsibility must judge for himself as to the im- 
portance of the papers which he wishes to use or to consult, and that 



vm PREFACE 

he claims the permission of perusiffg the same as his right in the in- 
terest of historical truth, not as a favor dependent upon the good will 
of ignorant clerks. If it be therefore not my right to have those 
copies, I have no disposition to ask a favor. 

I am, sir, respectfully, your obdt. servant, 

Friedrich Kapp. 

In January, 1862, I called at the State Department, and 
was informed by the then Chief Clerk, Mr. Hunter, thattlie 
reasons given by me to be allowed access to the DuCoudray 
Papers had not been deemed satisfactory. Subsequently I 
saw Senator Charles Sumner, and in the course of my con- 
versation with liim, I complained of the treatment I had 
received from the State Department. Mr. Sumner, with that 
obliging kindness and courtesy which the world over dis- 
tinguishes the gentleman, at once volunteered his services 
to procure me copies of the documents in question. On 
April n, 1862, he enclosed to me the following letter : 



Department of State, 
Washington, April 15, 1862. 



Hon. Charles Sumner, Senate Chamber. 

Sir : This Department accedes to the request which has been 
made by you, that Mr. Kapp may have access to certain papers that 
are among the Revolutionary Archives; or Mr. Kapp can have the 
papers referred to copied in the Department, by conforming to the 
requirements of law in this regard. 

I am, sir, your obedient servant, 

William H. Seward. 

As grateful as I was to the distinguished Senator for his 
interference, I did not feel disposed to avail myself of Mr. 
Seward's tardy permission. Having been warned by a former 
sad experience in the State Department, I had neglected 
nothing to conform with the requirements of the law in this 
respect, and I therefore considered tlie condition mentioned 
in Mr. Steward's note as a mere excuse to the Senator. Be- 



PREFACE 



sides, for three unsuccessful trips to Washington, and for 
copying in the Department, I liad already spent considerably 
more than my means at that time would permit. 

I should have wished to correct an error which I had 
committed in my life of Steuben, where, mentioning the deal- 
ings between Beaumarchais and the United States, I had 
charged the latter as being in fault, while a later and more 
thorough study of the subject convinced me that the only 
blame in these transactions properly fell on the shoulders 
of Beaumarchais. If I omitted to fulfil this duty, Mr. 
Seward's subordinates have to account for it. 

Be that as it may, the materials enumerated exhaust the 
subject, and even cast new and important lights upon the 
political relations of France to England, and the present 
United States, from the year 1T67 to 1777, as well as upon 
some of the designs, hitherto unknown, of the French states- 
men of that era. In these disclosures, Kalb is invested with 
a political no less than with a mihtary interest. His inter- 
course with Choiseul and Broglie, Lafayette and Washing- 
ton, unfold the inmost recesses of the history of the period, 
and carry the reader far beyond the narrow confines of a 
military career, into the mazes of international politics. 

While the life of every man is a reflection, more or less 
faithful, of the history of his time, which, indeed, is but 
the product of the welded activity of its thinkers and 
agents, Kalb is peculiarly a true son of the eighteenth cent, 
ury. Issuing from the undermost strata of society, and 
scaling its heights by dint of native power, he labors wit- 
tingly and willingly to bring out the form and pressure of 
the age, and bears in every feature the stamp of its faults 
and of its glories, of its paltry political misery and its lefty 
republican aspirations, its craven deference to timeworn 
prejudice, and its titanic wrestlings with hoary tradition. 

Feiedeich Kapp. 

Berlin, January 1884. 



CHAPTER I. 

Kalb's Pedigree and Birth. — Enters the French Service, and Assumes a 
Title of Nobilitf. — His Motives. — Current Opinions of the Last Cen- 
tury on the Subject of the Differences between the Various Condi- 
tions in Life. — Kai.b a Lij:utknant in the Regiment Loewendal. — 
Kalb's Campaigns in Flanders and Alsace. — The School op Marshal 
Saxe. — Kalb Becomes a Captain, Adjutant, and " Officierde Detail". 
— Garrisons where he was Stationed in Times of Peace. — His Duties 
AND Services. — Capitulary Articles of the Foreign Regiments. — 
Kalb's Plan of an Invasion op England, and Creation op a Body op 
Marine Infantry, — The Project Fails of Adoption at Versailles. — 
He Returns to Cambray and Obtains a Major's Commission in 1756. 

TT was not, as lias been hitherto erroneously supposed, the 
-^ lordly castle of a German baron, but the humble cottage 
of a Franconian peasant, which gave to the world the hero 
whose career these pages are intended io commemorate. 

John Kalb was born the 29th of June, 1721, at Huetten- 
dorf, a village then belonging to the Margraviate of Bay- 
reuth, afterward under Prussian sovereignty, but at present 
incorporated with the parish of Frauenaurach in the Bavarian 
district of Erlangen. His father, John Leonard Kalb, was 
the son of Hans Kalb, yeoman, of Leinburg, near Altdorf, 
and figured in the church records of Frauenaurach as " so- 
journer and peasant of Huettendorf." On the 24th of April, 
1715, he married Mrs. Margaret Putz, of Huettendorf, whose 
maiden name was Seitz, and her birthplace Eschenbach. The 
issue of this marriagie, besides our hero, already named, were 
1 



2 LIFE OF KALB. 

two sons, of whom the eldevSt,* George, born November 15, 
1718, died as a peasant at Stadeln, near Fuertb, while the 
youngest, Andrew, born the iVth of January, 1727, inherited 
the homestead at Huettendorf. John passed his childhood in 
his father's house, and received his earliest schooling at Krie- 
genbronn. Then he became a waiter, and as such, when 
barely sixteen years of age, he went abroad.* At this point 
his trace is lost for years. There can be but little doubt that 
he soon found his way to France, and cast his lot with military 
men, for about the close of the year 1743 the peasant boy 
Hans Kalb turns up as Jean de Kalb, lieutenant in he regiment 
Loewendal of French infantry.^ IIow he reached these for- 
eign parts, and how he achieved his position there, I have 
not succeeded in ascertaining; nor is it probable that any 
authentic clue to the mystery will ever be discovered. 

Throughout the last century, more than at any other time, 
the line of distinction between the character of an adventurer 
and that of a hero is very dim, often scarcely discernible ; and 
the antecedents of many a man who, at a subsequent stage of 
his career has scaled the heights of fame, are checkered with 
alternate displays of either. The force of circumstances seems 
to have thrust Kalb into the path of adventure in early life, 
while his staid and sober disposition tended to impel him in 
the opposite direction. It is very clear that his advancement 
was facilitated by his assumption of nobility, and in the high- 
est degree probable that it was achieved by some act of gal- 
lantry in the face of the enemy. But where and how he 
acquired the manners and the knowledge necessary to main- 
tain his ground, is a question difficult to answer. If he had 
entered a regiment commanded by Frenchmen, the inference 
would be that he was enabled to sustain his role by the limit- 



LIFE OF KALB. 3 

ed acquaintance of the French officers of that day with Ger- 
man society and habits. But we find him in a corps, which, 
though enlisted under French colors, was officered almost 
exclusively by German noblemen, thus bringing him into 
contact with men who must have had an accurate knowledge 
of the German nobility, and some of whom may have be- 
longed to tlie same province, or at least may have been con- 
nected with the landed gentry of that neighborhood by the 
ties of blood or friendship. 

Kalb's assumption of a title not legally belonging to him 
is not at all surprising, in view of the fact that none of the 
armies of that day admitted the claims of a commoner to 
promotion, and that shortly before the breaking out of the 
French revolution (in 1781) the privilege of holding commis- 
sions in the army was restricted to nobles of at least four 
ancestors.' Indeed, the nobility of that period may be said 
to have comprised the whole of its good society. Even Fred- 
erick the Great went so far as to attribute to that order a 
higher sense of honor and a more profound insight into the 
art of war and the mystery of statecraft, and to limit the 
appointment of untitled men to important offices to the most 
exceptional cases. ISTor did the slighted classes resent their 
subordination, or regard it as anything worthy of comment. 
Puetter, the celebrated jurist of Goettingen, a contemporary 
of Kalb, always felt himself especially honored when some 
count or baron addressed him, or even vouchsafed to chat 
with him during the lazy hours of the bathing season at 
Pyrmont. It is well known that Goethe was profoundly 
flattered at being admitted to the edifying conversation of 
some obscure prince at Karlsbad, and his annals record as 
preeminently noteworthy that the Prince of Reuss, a poten- 



4 LIFE OF KALB. 

tate who but for this mention'would have gone to his grave 
unknown to posterity, always honored him with " an affable 
and gracious demeanor." A hundred such histances might 
be cited to show the peculiar fascination exercised by the 
purely factitious blazon of nobility even upon the leading 
minds of that era. As a partial compensation for this injustice 
the favored class of that day good-naturedly acquiesced in 
the nobihty of any one who managed to assume the title and 
the external badges of the order, without inquiring closely 
into his pedigree. This was particularly the case in France, 
where men where just awakening to a sense of the absurdity 
of these prejudices. Hence that swarm of adventurers who 
wormed their way into these circles of the quality, where they 
were generally tolerated, and often petted, until some caprice 
or accident hurled them back into their original oblivion. 

Like hundreds before and after him — of whom St. Arnaud 
and Persigny may serve as examples — Kalb adopted the 
means best calculated to lift him out of the narrow confines 
of his native condition into a more advantageous position. 
Regarding this step in the light of his time, it cannot be judged 
too mildly. The title of nobility was simply the password 
which unlocked the world to him, the indispensable starting- 
point for all fui'ther operations. One more scruple on his 
part, and the world would probably have gained a sturdy 
yeoman, but lost a hero ! 

Be that as it may, our hero is henceforth Baron de Kalb. 
the Kalb of history. The regiment formed by Count Loe- 
wendal on the first of September, 1743, to which, about the 
close of the same year, we find him attached as lieutenant, 
was then stationed in Flanders, and shared in the brilliant 
though ultimately barren victories won by the French armies 



LIFEOFKALB. 5 

under Marshal Saxe over the united forces of the English, 
Dutch, and Austrians. 

The war of the Austrian Succession, theretofore confined 
to Germany, was just then assuming European dimensions. 
France, true to her ancient policy of hostility to Austria, had 
entered into the contest in 1740, merely as the ally of the 
elector Albert of Bavaria, in opposition to the pretensions of 
Maria Theresa; in 1744, however, she openly declared war 
against Great Britain and Austria. To drive the English out 
of the Netherlands, Louis XV. himself entered Flanders, 
opened the campaign with the siege of Menin, which sur- 
rendered after a brief resistance, and proceeded to invest 
Ypres and Furnes, which were also speedily reduced. The 
Loewendal regiment took a prominent part in these three 
operations. When the Austrians invaded Alsace in consid- 
erable force, Louis resolved to conduct 40,000 of the flower 
of his victorious Flemish army to the support of Marshal 
Coigny on the Rhine. At Metz, however, the king fell dan- 
gerously ill. The French, instead of driving the enemy across 
or into the Rhine, frittered away their forces in exhausting 
marches, futile manoeuvres, and petty engagements. One of 
the latter was the brilliant attack upon the village of Augen- 
heim, in which again the Loewendal regiment gained peculiar 
distinction. The French took the place on the 23d of August, 
1744, after a determined resistance on the part of the Aus- 
trian grenadiers and Hungarians, but gave the Prince of Lor- 
raine time, upon the news of the irruption of Frederick IL into 
Bohemia, to make good the passage of the Rhine without 
molestation, and then to march upon Prague by way of Swabia 
and the Upper Palatinate. Instead of pursuing the enemy, 
the French contented themselves with the conquest of the 



6 LIFE OF KALB. 

Brisgow, and concluded the campaign in November, 1744, 
with the taking of Freiburg, under the walls of which alone 
they lost twelve thousand men. In this siege, also, the Loe- 
wendal regiment was engaged, so that in the course of a single 
year, Kalb had a share in three sieges and one hotly-contest- 
ed battle. 

In the following year, 1745, his regiment rejoined the 
army of Marshal Saxe in the Netherlands. At the battle of 
Fontenoy, fought May 11, 1745, it formed a part of the re- 
serve which was under the command of Loewendal himself; 
and in pursuance of this victory, which was mainly brought 
about by the gallantry of the foreign regiments, it assisted at 
the capture of Ghent, Oudenarde, Ostende, and Nieuport. 
In fact, if we except the battles of Lafeld and Raucoux, there 
is hardly a decisive event in the course of these campaigns 
in which the regiment was not distinguished. Thus, in 1746, 
it was active at .the reduction of Huy and Namur. In 1747 
it shared in the taking of Ecluse and Sar de Gand, and in the 
still more celebrated storming of Bergen op Zoom, which 
brought its commander the marshal's baton ; in 1748 it 
aided in the siege and capture of Mastricht, at the close of 
which the French, exhausted by the war, purchased the peace 
of Aix-la-Chapelle by the surrender of all their conquests in 
the Netherlands. 

It was Kalb's good fortune to receive his military training 
in the school of Marshal Saxe, the greatest captain of Europe 
in the period intervening between the career of Prince 
Eugene and that of Frederick the Great, and whom the latter 
venerated as the " professor of all the European generals." 
But Loewendal too was a general fitted to stand beside the 
ablest chieftains of the age, and particularly eminent in the 



LIFE OF KALB. 



art of reducing fortifications. From the subordinate position 
occupied by our hero, it is but natural that his name does not 
figure in the reports of this war; but there is evidence in 
papers stiil extant that he was even then a diligent and ener- 
getic officer, occupying all his leisure moments in the study 
principally of the modern languages, and of the higher branches 
of mathematics as applied to the art of fortification and to 
the internal organization of various bodies of troops. Under 
these circumstances he could not fail to attract the attention 
of his superiors, and was not only assigned to services of im- 
portance, but rapidly promoted. In 1747 he was made cap- 
tain and adjutant, and also charged with the duties of an 
" officer of detail." 

This designation was peculiar to the French army of the 
eighteenth century, and combined the offices of general man- 
ager and judge of the regiment. It was for the incumbent to 
superintend all its affairs, from the most trivial minutiae of 
daily routine to the most important points of discipline and 
jurisprudence. The colonel gave the regiment his name and 
was its representative abroad, the officer of detail controlled 
its internal administration. He conducted the correspondence 
with the commanding general and the minister of war, re- 
ported the condition of the men, made requisitions to meet 
their wants, scrutinized and expounded the articles of war — 
of which each regiment then had its own — vindicated their 
rights as against their superiors, suggested rewards and punish- 
ments, and acted, in short, as the virtual head of the regiment. 

A position at once so honorable to a young officer, and so 
responsible, could be well filled only by a man of intelligence, 
energy, and integrity. It was occupied by Kalb during 
almost the entire duration of the peace which preceded the 



8 LIFE OF KALB. 

Seven Years' War. His regimecrt was in garrison at Pfalzburg 
and Cambray. Our hero was not only studious of faithfully 
performing the duties of his office, but also endeavored, as far as 
in him lay, to correct existing abuses, and to infuse coherence 
and humanity into the barbarous and contradictory codes by 
which his own and other regiments were governed. The ar- 
ticles of war, or capitulations, adopted at the formation or 
subsequent reorganizations of the various regiments of the 
French array, produced an anomalous state of things replete 
with doubt and incongruities. Every regiment was a close 
corporation, a petty state within itself, and of course exces- 
sively jealous of its *' rights and franchises." What in one 
regiment was enjoined by the law, was punished in another 
as a crime. Every " Capitulation," was an independent treaty 
between the King of France of the one part, and the for- 
eign soldiers of the other. The latter sold their services 
in consideration of the most favorable stipulations and privi- 
leges, which the former accorded lavishly or sparingly, accord- 
ing to the urgency of his military necessities. Thus, each 
regiment occupied a position of its own, and its discipline 
frequently came into conflict with that of the rest of the 
army. In spite, or rather in consequence of the most precise 
directions in reference to discipline, arms, uniform, subsist- 
ence, and police, in peace and war, doubts and difficulties fre- 
quently arose, which were passed upon by the minister of 
war on the report of the officer of detail. Kalb devoted 
himself to this portion of his task with the greatest zeal, en- 
deavoring either to resolve his doubts by taking the advice 
of his colleagues in other foreign regiments, or, failing that, 
to settle important points by the decision of the minister him- 
self To give an instance among many — a court-martial of 



LIFEOFKALB. 9 

liis regiment had condemned to death a deserter who, after 
having sold his uniform in a foreign country, had returned to 
France, and been arrested. A minority of the judges dis- 
sented, and voted for the gauntlet, on the ground that capi- 
tal punishment was only incurred where the deserter was ar- 
rested out of the kingdom. On the 20th of August, 1751, 
Kalb submitted the case to the minister of war, Count d'x4.r- 
genson, who, on 21st of September, decided in favor of the mild- 
er sentence, on the ground of the ordinances of the regiment. 
The independent jurisdiction of the regimental court- 
martials often led to the most intolerable abuses. In the 
absence of a regular course of procedure, particularly in 
police matters, the accused was often exposed to the arbitrary 
cruelty of narrow-minded judges. Kalb did what he could 
to redress these grievances, and corresponded wdth the 
officers of detail of all the other German regiments in the 
service, with the view of approximating harmony in the dis- 
tribution of punishments. Thus, for instance, it was the rule 
with most of the regiments, that public women detected in 
the barracks fell under the jurisdiction of the colonel. The 
latter usually had them publicly whipped by the very soldiers 
in whose company they had been caught. It was revolting to 
the men to be made the instruments of such a chastisement, 
and they often vented their aversion to so sudden an exchange 
of the functions of a paramour for those of the beadle, in acts 
of flagrant insubordination. On one occasion of this kind in 
Nancy, in 1748, three grenadiers were hung for mutiny. 
Though unsuccessful in his efibrts to bring about the total 
abolition of this degrading punishment, Kalb at least effected 
the dispensation of the men of his own regiment from being 
the instruments of it/ 
1* 



10 LIFE OF KALB. 

'Nov is it in these more important matters alone that Kalb 
watched over the interests of the soldiers entrusted to him. 
He was equally vigilant in the smallest matters of detail. At 
one time he is called upon to indicate the claim to fifteen beds 
accorded to the German infantry by a capitulation of May 
1, 1V33, in which he is sustained by the minister of war 
against the commissary-general. Again he is found procuring 
a decision adjusting differences between the major attached to 
a post and the major attached to the regiment which gar- 
risons the post, and determining which of them shall be 
entitled to claim the sword of a regimental ofiicer who 
dies in garrison. And again he obtains the extradition of 
deserters who have been mustered into a French regiment, 
and accomplishes the ascertainment of the rule under which 
a soldier may change his regiment without incurring the 
penalty of desertion. Neither did the deta^s of the service 
distract his attention from the scientific branches of his 
profession, on the one hand, or the political horizon which 
foreboded the speedy return of hostilities between England 
and France on the other. In concluding the peace of Aix-la- 
Chapelle in 1748 both parties had studiously left the terms so 
vague, and their mutual claims to certain American posses- 
sions so undecided, that the war was unavoidably renewed at 
the earliest opportunity. During all the eight years that 
ensued, the two nations were eying each other in an attitude 
of preparation. In 1754, before the Seven Years' War was 
thought of, skirmishes and encounters frequently occurred 
between the English and the French garrisons in Canada, and 
on the Ohio and Mississippi, in which the English were gen- 
erally worsted. The war had already become inevitable, 
although it was not formally declared before the beginning 



LIFE OF KALB. 11 

of the year 11 oQ. Kalb was well aware of its approach, and^ 
though a German, he cherished his full share of the hatred 
of the French aojainst the Eno-lish. 

Convinced of the inadequacy of the means of maritime 
defence then at the disposal of France, he ventured, about 
end of the year 1754, when the news of the first disturbances 
in America was received in France, to submit to M. Machault, 
the minister of marine, a plan for the formation of a foreign 
regiment of marine infantry, which was to be organized with 
a particular view to sudden landings on the coasts of England 
and her colonies. Then as now the British were tormented 
by perpetual fears of a French invasion of the island. In 
1744 Marshal Saxe had engaged in preparations for a landing, 
in concert with the Scotch pretender, at Dunkirk, and had 
thereby constrained the withdrawal of the English forces 
from Flanders quite as effectually as if the threat had been 
actually carried out. The success of the marshal on that 
occasion appears to have first directed Kalb's attention to the 
subject. How well his plan accorded with the national incli- 
nations, and how popular a project of this kind always has 
been and always will be, has been abundantly shown by the 
subsequent history of the monarchy, the republic, and the 
empire. Two years after the rejection of Kalb's proposition 
Marshal Belleisle, the successor of d'Argenson as minister of 
war, conceived the design of crossing the channel in flat-bot- 
tomed craft, and was seconded in this hairbrained project by 
the most influential parties of the court, headed by that mys- 
terious personage, the Count St. Germain. In 1759 Choiseul 
managed to secure the neutrality of Holland and the alliance 
of Sweden, for the purpose of enabling him to land in Eng- 
land and dictate terras of peace to the enemy in London 



12 LIFEOFKALB. 

itself. His fleet, however, was disabled in the Bay of Quihe- 
ron, which frustrated a movement undertaken at immense 
expense. Like a sacred tradition these expeditions recur as 
often as a war with England is declared or threatened. 
Louis XVL made similar preparations. Under the directory 
a fleet of gunboats was maintained in the channel for years, 
with a like object. Napoleon L is well known to have enter- 
tained similar designs at Boulogne, and the lower empire 
would not be the faithful caricature of its predecessor which 
it is, if its Chauvins did not brandish their sabres at the 
northern horizon, and prate of the humiliation of England in 
her own capital, whenever it served the turn of their lord and 
master. Let us hear Kalb's own exposition of his views of 
the best means of humbling the pride of Albion in his day.* 
" A regiment of foreign marines," he says in his memorial, 
" would be of undoubted advantage to the king. It should 
number from eight to twelve hundred men, and w^ould have to 
serve on land, on the coast, in the colonies, and on board the 
navy, and be composed of Germnns, Danes, Swedes, English- 
men, inhabitants of our own seaboard provinces, but above all 
things of L'ishmen. The latter are universally known to be 
the best sailors and marines of the English navy; besides, 
they are Roman Catholics. Their concourse to our flag 
might make it possible for us to people a considerable part 
of our colonies with them. By making this disposition of 
them we might secure the adherence of numbers of Irishmen 
in any undertaking against the naval power, the colonies, or 
the provinces of England, and might keep ourselves well 
informed of all the hostile movements of the British. All 
the world is aware of the hatred cherished hj the Irish against 
the English. The former never served the latter for any 



LIFE OF KALB. 13 

other reason than the want of better employment. It is re« 
markable that this project has not been broached heretofore. 
How invahiable would such a corps have been to the State at 
the time when the king had sixteen thousand Irishmen in his 
service ! For six and forty years France has had no more 
trusty soldiers, none who served her, on all occasions, with 
greater zeal and efficiency. But they would have been much 
more useful at sea than on land, for the former must be re- 
garded as their native element." 

After detailing the advantages to be derived from the 
adoption of his plan, Kalb proceeds to discuss the disposition 
of the force to be raised. 

"Detachments," he continues, " should be sent to Quebec 
and Louisburg, and recruited in Nova Scotia, which colony is 
almost exclusively inhabited by English and Irish Catholics. 
By this means we should be furnished with every information 
which it would be to our interest to receive from that portion 
of America. Other detachments could be usefully employed 
at Martinique, Guadaloupe, and Marie Galante, as these islands 
command all the other French and all the English possessions 
in that quarter, in consequence of the easterly winds prevail- 
ing there from year's end to year's end, and which would enable 
us in twenty-four hours to reach Barbadoes, Antigua, and the 
remaining English Antilles, which carry on considerable com- 
merce. The same advantage is offered by Cape Frangais, the 
best harbor in that portion of San Domingo, subject to the 
King, which lies to windward of Jamaica, the most important 
English possession in America. A strong detachment of the 
regiment posted there, and commanded by officers of zeal and 
intelligence, might secure the fullest and most reliable 
intelligence about the strength of the English, their move- 



14 LIFEOFKALB. 

raents, their weak points, and the best means of surprising 
them. 

*' If the regiment is to render the service fairly to be ex- 
pected, it must be formed and instructed in time. Soldiers 
reared in a discipline of years may be depended on for im- 
plicit obedience in any enterprise, while ignorance of the 
country and of the hostile resources will always expose an 
army to the misfortunes which befell the fleet commanded by 
the Due d'Antin in 1740 and 1741. His attack upon Ja- 
maica failed from utter want of knowledge of the country. 
Had he been in command of soldiers such as I propose to 
raise, he would have been sufficiently apprised that the English 
had not a tenth part of the force attributed to them in his 
calculations. Besides, it is notorious that the British suc- 
ceeded in taking Fort St. Louis on San Domingo only on ac- 
count of the cowardice of the garrison ; they could never 
have reduced it, had it been defended by a well-disciplined 
force such as I have suggested." 

Kalb concludes his memorial by proposing to bestow the 
commissions on the Catholic nobility and gentry of England 
and Ireland, as a measure most acceptable to the younger 
sons of those families, and calculated greatly to multiply the 
devoted subjects of the French crown. 

The plan is accompanied by two specifications, which ex- 
haust the technical details of the project. The first of these 
supplements discusses the composition and organization of the 
regiment, its pay, equipment, and discipline ; while the second 
gives the outlines of a " capitulation " designed to regulate 
the rights and duties of the regiment as against the crown. 

The work has here been reproduced in its leading details, 
because it brings out in bold relief the young officer's politi- 



LIFE OF KALB. 15 

cal intelligence and military acquirements. He speaks with- 
out reserve or circumlocution, not as a craven sycophant, 
greedy of private gain, but as a man convinced of the merits 
of his case, and anxious to make all the energies of his adopt- 
ed country available against its most formidable foe. 

Nor did Kalb deceive himself as to the obstacles to be 
encountered. He saw very clearly that his subordinate posi- 
tion in the military hierarchy was a hindrance in his path, 
the more so as his designs involved the most important ques- 
tions of foreign politics, of the finances, and of colonial de- 
fence. Aside from these scruples on the score of the public 
welfare, he also came into collision with the interests of the 
colonels who commanded foreign regiment's in the French 
service, and recruited them in Ireland, Germany, and the sea- 
board provinces. 

While the king and his mistresses were wasting millions, 
and scandalously neglecting the army and the soldier, the 
minister of marine, to sustain the existing establishment, was 
driven to exercise the most rigid parsimony, and could hardly 
be expected to consent to an expenditure less indispensable 
than others, and admitting of no test of its practical efficacy 
except the ordeal of actual warfare. 

Nevertheless, Kalb made the effort, and followed it up 
with vigor and skill. He enlisted the cooperation of an older 
officer. Lieutenant-colonel Niell, of the Dillon regiment, by 
designating him for the colonelcy of the proposed organiza- 
tion, of which Kalb w^as to be the senior major. Directing 
his first operation against the opposition of the colonels, he 
undertook to dissipate their fears of his competition with 
their recruiting sergeants, by showing that the new regiment, 
instead of interfering with the old ones, would attract so 



16 LIFE OF KALB. 

many recruits, as to open a new and abundant source of sup- 
ply to all the foreign regiments. Finding tha there was little 
hope of convincing the minister by means of a written corre- 
spondence, he procured a furlough, and travelled, early in the 
year 1755, from Cambray to Paris, where he obtained audi- 
ences of the minister of war and marine, and their subordi- 
nates. He also endeavored to make interest with the most 
influential persons at the Court of Versailles. The Keeper of 
the Great Seal received him with especial kindness, and en- 
couraged him in the active prosecution of his purpose. For 
a moment things looked promising, and success imminent ; 
but the naval minister, on whose accession everything de- 
pended, soon showed a disposition to procrastinate. M. de 
Machault was lavish in the praise of the originator of the 
plan, but deferred its detailed examination from day to day. 
The English colonels were particularly active in their in- 
trigues against Kalb. His friend Niell, of more mature ex- 
perience, and better acquainted with the ways of the court, 
advised him to gain over one or two of Madame de Pompa- 
dour's especial favorites, by promising them the patronage 
of the most lucrative positions connected with the new regi- 
ment, and to allure de la Porte, the first secretary of the 
minister of marine, by cutting down the estimates to the 
lowest figure. This courtly game was repulsive to Kalb's 
frank and open nature. He answered his friend by saying 
that he was advocating a public measure, in which he coveted 
nothing for himself except an opportunity of achieving mili- 
tary distinction, and that he would not stoop to the role of a 
flatterer or a suppliant. Preferring to renounce his plan, 
and preserve his military honor, he left Paris in May, 1755, 
and returned to his garrison at Cambray, where, in the fol- 
lowing year, he was promoted to a majority in his regiment. 



CHAP TEE 11. 

The Seven Years' War. — Position of the German Officers in the French 
Army. — Historical Resume op the Political Development of Ger- 
^ MANY. — Imposing Position of France in Europe. — Foreign Regiments 
IN THE French Service. — Number of German Regiments. — Want of 
National Spirit Among Them. — The French Army at the Breaking 
Out of the War. — Campaigns in Lower Germany. — Battle of Ross- 
bach. — Relations of Kalb with Broglie. — Battle of Bergen. — The 
New Commander-in-Chief Desires to Transfer him to the Corps op 
the Saxon Allies. — Battle of Grebenstein, or Wilhelmsthal. — Kalb 
IN the Wetteraw and in Frankfort-on-the-Main. — He Assists a Num- 
ber of Ducal and Noble Families in Presenting their Claims for 
Indemnity Against the French Commissariat. — Patriotic Letter of 
THE Princess of Braunfels. — At the Conclusion of Peace Kalb goes 
INTO Garrison at Landau. 

rr^HE Seven Years' War, through which we are now to 
-L follow the fortunes of Major Kalb, will claim our atten- 
tion in so far only as our hero was actively concerned in it. 
Neither in a personal nor in a political point of view do we 
find him in an enviable position. The ignominy and disaster 
of the French arms could not but throw a shade uj^on every 
officer, however individually brave and effective, and could 
not but embitter the pursuit of his profession. Moreover, a 
German could feel but little honor in finding himself arrayed 
against his country in the war which for the first time after 
more than a century of national humiliation, restored the 
pride of his people, and brought them back to the upward 
course of political and intellectual progress. Much as Kalb 



18 LIFEOFKALB. 

resented tlie former grievance,*tlie influences of the times no 
doubt made him perfectly callous to the latter; nor in jus- 
tice can he be made answerable for this his j)osition in the 
French army. 

The practice of taking service under the French flag 
must be considered in connection with the lamentable con- 
dition of the German people in the period intervening be- 
tween the middle of the seventeenth and that of the 
eighteenth century. Germany had well-nigh bled to death 
in the Reformation. It had vindicated the liberty of the 
individual judgment in matters of faith, but had failed to 
make the same principle the corner-stone of its political and 
social structure. The Thirty Years' War had broken down 
the power of the nation. The Peace of Westphalia but set 
the seal upon its impotence, which it perpetuated by ac- 
knowledging the virtual sovereignty of the vassal of the 
buried empire. The petty princes thus emancipated from 
the control of the emperor, but too weak to defend them- 
selves, sought protection and support abroad, particularly in 
France, which, for the very purpose of bruising the strength 
of its neighbor, constituted itself the guardian of what it 
called the " German liberties " — a term intended to designate 
the privileges usurped by these petty magnates — and which 
thereby attained the dignity of arbiter in the affairs of 
Europe. It w^as a natural incident of this system that the 
centralizing despotism of Louis XIY. was studiously imitated 
by the narrow-minded, puny, and brutal German satraps. 
Paris and Versailles were the models, the potent influence 
of Avhich speedily penetrated the inmost heart of Germany. 
French licentiousness and statecraft soon remained the only 
ties of union and accord between the divided and jealous 



LIFE OF KALB. 19 

potentates. The very German sovereigns who stickled so 
persistently for the indicia of rank and dignity at home, 
crawled in the dust before Louis XIV. and his successor, 
took the wages of their degradation in large sums of ready 
money, and voluntarily abased themselves before the most 
insignificant French noblemen. A conspicuous but by no 
means solitary instance is found in the behavior of the elec- 
tor Charles Albert of Bavaria, afterward Charles VII., 
toward the Duke of Belleisle, in whom he venerated " the 
creator of his good fortune, the arbiter of his fate." 

Even after the inglorious issue of the Seven Years' War 
the German princes flocked to the standard of France, leav- 
ing their pride of place behind them. " All the German 
princes, sovereigns at home," says Segur in his Memoirs, 
''were treated as equals by the French nobility in Paris. 
Ko one ever heard of any distinction being made between 
Prince Max of Deuxponts, the future King of Bavaria, 
and the French nobles who served with him, or kept his 
company." These princes of the empire forfeited their com- 
missions and their honor by refusing to accept a challenge 
from a needy French adventurer. The fondness of the 
French gentry for such encounters with their princely com- 
rades, and the equivocal renown achieved by some of the 
latter in accepting these opportunities, are the theme of ex- 
tended narratives given by Segur of occurrences in the eighth 
decade of that century.^ 

In the eyes of the men of Versailles, the peoples existed 
simply as objects of barter and trade by cabinets and di- 
plomatists. The arbitrary will of the prince was the su- 
preme law, the vivifying and invigorating power of the 
State ; in sovereign ignorance of national conditions and na- 



20 LIFEOFKALB. 

tional relations, the monarch'^ selfish and purblind policy 
subverted the prosperity of his subjects, and respected no 
limit and no law except his fancy and caprice. Between the 
despotism of France and that of Germany, there was but 
one distinction ; that, however, was an enormous one. The 
former, an ofishoot of the soil on which it grew, was nation- 
al, original, formidable, and of vast dimensions ; the latter, 
foreign to the German mind in all its features, was a paltry 
and ridiculous caricature. 

Like master, like man ; the difference between the sover- 
eigns found its counterpart in the difference between the 
nobilities of the two countries. In the days of Hutten and 
Sickingen the German barons had maintained their position 
as the natural champions of popular interests against the 
increasing pretensions of the princes ; the absolute power of 
the latter could not fail to deprive the landed gentry of their 
independence, and to degrade them to the level of courtiers. 
Cringing and subservient to those above them, supercilious 
and overbearing to the lowly, the entire class had become a 
parasitic plant upon the body politic, and the very best spe- 
cimens of the order were nothing more than soulless tools in 
the hands of governmental power For the noble, as for his 
master, Paris was the sun round which the earth revolved ; 
he, too, was nothing but the thoughtless ape of French man- 
ners and customs, the hairbrained contemner of domestic 
affairs and domestic opinions. It was regarded as the height 
of good fortune to have visited Paris and Versailles, and no 
honor was more coveted than that of seeing the French 
king. At home, the nobility had the monopoly of the army 
commissions and court charges ; but these were far from 
sufficing for the maintenance of its numerous progeny, who 



LIFEOFKALB. * 21 

were therefore driven to look for distinction, reputation, and 
emoluments, in the civil and military service of foreign 
countries. In fact, the class had ceased to have a country ; 
the very idea had come to be rated among the prejudices of 
the " canaille." The well-known Count Bonneval, a wretch 
without honor or shame, who trampled upon all the virtues 
that grace humanity, who, after serving successively in the 
armies of France and of the Empire, forswore his faith and 
died as a Turkish pacha, spoke not his own language merely, 
but revealed the sentiments of his whole order, particularly 
of the German portion of it, when he wrote apologetically 
to Prince Eugene of Savoy that he was " far from entertain- 
ing that love of country to which the common people addict 
themselves." 

For men of this description France was the goal of all 
ambition. Throughout the past century we find the princes, 
counts, and barons of the Empire in French livery. There 
were, in this service, a number of German regiments, partly 
raised in the German provinces of France, partly recruited 
from native Germans, and always commanded by German 
officers. In 1748 the foreign troops belonging to the French 
king numbered 52,315 ; among them were no less than nine- 
teen German infantry battalions, with 525 officers and 17,- 
604 of the rank and file, and three regiments of cavalry, 
numbering 78 officers and 1,440 troopers, exclusive of tlie 
thir een Swiss regiments, of 806 officers and 17,940 enlisted 
men, thousands of w^hom were Germans. Even in 1776, 
when this state of things was approaching its close, the 
Germans in the pay of France comprised eight regiments of 
foot with 448 officers and 12,032 privates, besides three cav- 
alry regiments of 96 officers and 2,520 men.' 



22 LIFE OF KALB. 

These foreign troops were* maintained in pursuance of a 
Avell- directed policy. " Anxious as the foreign regiments 
otherwise were to assimilate themselves to the French," says 
Eugene Fieffe, " they always received the words of command 
in their own languages. Even in times of peace the ranks 
were kept better filled than those of the home levies, partly 
on account of the difficulty of recruiting in a foreign coun- 
try in time of war, and partly on account of the importance 
of keeping the veterans who would otherwise have enlisted 
under another flag. Their pay, too, was higher. Many of 
these corps belonged to princes or foreign great lords, whom 
it was desirable to attach to the interests of France. In 
other respects these soldiers were subjected to the same or- 
ganization and discipline as the French regiments. In most 
cases they did excellent service, having the esprit de corps 
strongly developed, consisting to a large extent of old cam- 
paigners, and being in the hands of officers who were born 
and died in the regiments. They were an object of constant 
solicitude to the Government, by whom they were regarded 
as their most reliable support, and as an invaluable counter- 
poise to the less pliant elements of the army. The king and 
the princes frequently reviewed them, as a means of keeping 
up a personal intercourse with the colonels, to whom theii' 
visits were of course extremely flattering. On such occa- 
sions each of the princes was furnished with a little card, 
containing translations and explanations of the commands 
and manoeuvres. These cards were kept carefully concealed 
in the palm of the hand or under the saddle." 

In Kalb's early days the disposition of the Germans to 
become French soldiers was particularly stimulated by the 
examples of two distinguished men, the Marshal Saxe, who 



LIFEOFKALB. 23 

was commander-in-chief, and Count Loewendal, who subse- 
quently became Marshal of France. As the political spirit 
of the century was rather cosmopolitan than national, and 
as the military spirit of the time was peculiarly exempt 
from the sentiment of nationality, so the wars of that period 
were cabinet enterprises, in whicli the weal or woe of the 
people was not at all, or but very little considered. The 
German people, in particular, had become so inured to this 
passive role, it was split into such a host of petty sovereign- 
ties, and so impoverished in ideals, in spirit, and in energy, 
that the members no longer acted upon a common principle 
of life, and few men ever gave a thought to matters outside 
of the sound of the village boll, or beyond the turnpike 
gates of the provincial domain. 

An evidence of this deplorable state of things is found 
in the fact that when, in the American revolution, England 
hired troops from Brunswick, Hesse, Anspach, Waldeck, 
and Zerbst, these poor conscripts never had a thought of a 
common country, and never opposed to the English, French, 
or Americans, any other fatherland than the little duchy or 
county which had sold them into bondage. I have perused 
at least fifty volumes of manuscript reports, diaries, and letters 
relating to this enforced participation of the German yeo- 
manry in the attempted subjugation of the British colonies, 
without ever once stumbling upon the use of the bare word 
"German." "Forward, brave Waldeckers ! Hessians, show 
yourselves worthy of your ancient fame ! Down with the 
rebels, my doughty Brunswickers ! " Such are the shouts 
addressed to their valor ; even when slighted, their common 
origin never occurred to them; for these poor devils there 
was no Germany ; tliey knew only their Waldeck, Bruns- 



24 LIFEOFKALB. 

wick, 6r Zerbst sultans, exc^t wlien called on to hurrah for 
the King of England, their liege lord by trade and barter. 

If, then, the relation of master and servant was the only 
one recognized in the eighteenth century, if the princes and 
lords of Germany never scrupled to bear arms against their 
country when their interests prompted, if military honor and 
distinction were the sole ambition of the soldier, how could 
an individual be expected to entertain that sentiment of pa- 
triotism which can only spring from an appreciation of the 
value of citizenship, from an active and constant participa- 
tion in the affairs of the community and the State? The 
best fruit of the Seven Years' War was the faint revival of 
this feeling, and it was left for the present century to wit- 
ness its restoration. 

The times, therefore, and those who brought them on, 
must bear the blame, if we find the German estranged from 
his native land. Let us be thankful that the return of na- 
tional pride and national honor has put an end to a state 
of things which drove thousands of Germans to fight against 
their country. 

At the period of Kalb's entrance into the French array, 
the brilliant monarchy of Louis XIV. was already tottering 
to its fall. A German commander still achieved French 
victories, and a large portion of Germany was still in the 
tutelage of France ; but the policy which reispected nothing 
but the interests of the State was no longer pursued, and 
after the death of Cardinal Fleury (1743), the last statesman 
of the old school, the management of affairs became a mere 
appendage to the intrigues of the court and the orgies of the 
king's mistresses. The first work of this new pov/er was an 
expensive and disgraceful war, in which the countty had no 



LIFE OF K ALB. 25 

interest whatever, and which cost her most of her influence 
in the councils of Europe, her navy, and the greater part of 
her foreign colonies. 

It was no want of courage in the soldier or the subaltern 
that produced these reverses, but the miserable generalsliip of 
the creatures of Madame de Pompadour, who frittered away 
their time in petty bickerings, jealousies, and debauchery, 
guided and controlled by nothing except the freaks of court 
intrigue. Wherever the French soldier was under good 
leadership, wherever he had confidence in his commanders, 
his conduct in this war was as good as in any other ; and 
there are instances of personal daring fit to stand beside the 
greatest in history. Frederick the Great himself appreciated 
their courage, and remarl^ed that under good generals they 
would have achieved as many victories as they sustained 
defeats under bad ones. 

The King of Prussia baffled the designs of his adversa- 
ries, and opened the war, in 1756, by his unexpected irrup- 
tion into Saxony. France, also, had not calculated upon the 
commencement of hostilities earlier than the spring of 1757, 
for it was only in September, 1756, that steps were taken to 
place the forces on a war footing. Of the German infantry, 
three battalions of each of the Alsace regiments and two 
battalions of each of the regiments Bentheim, la Mark, 
Royal Suedois, Royal Baviere, and Loewendal were raised 
from 400 to 680 men in the course of the winter, and at- 
tached to the " Army of the Upper Rhine," which, number- 
ing 30,000 men, and commanded by the Prince of Soubise, 
crossed the Rhine at Dusseldorf, and advanced in the direc- 
tion of Saxony. At the same time the Marshal d'Estree, 
with 70,000 men, invaded northwestern Germany, and, 



26 LIFEOFKALB. 

without encountering any ct)nsiderable opposition, occupied 
Cleve, Westphalia, East Friesland, and Hesse Cassel. 

The French commander in this department proved de- 
cidedly superior to his antagonist, the Duke of Cumberland,,] 
and defeated him on the 26th of July, 1757, at Hastenbeck. 
He was unable, however, to follow up his successes, being 
recalled in consequence of a court cabal, and supplanted by 
the Due de Richelieu. The latter drove the enemy to the; 
coast of the North Sea, between the Elbe and the Weser, 
and then concluded the capitulation of Kloster Seven, which 
was repudiated by all parties. He directed his attention 
principally to the plunder of the conquered provinces, and 
derived but little benefit from the advantages obtained in 
the field. In September, while Richelieu, with the main 
army, advanced upon Magdeburg, the corps of Prince Sou- 
bise marched to Erfurt, where it formed a junction with the 
troops of the Empire, and then pushed across Thuringia into 
Saxony, there to cooperate with the other enemies of the 
King of Prussia in surrounding him. Frederick, however, 
attacked Soubise along the whole line of the Saale, and, on 
the 5th of November, 175 7, inflicted upon him that over- 
whelming defeat of Rossbach, a victory for the Prussians 
which will be named through all history. a 

Kalb took part in this battle. His regiment belonged to 
the corps of the Due de Broglie, which was to have })re- 
vented the Prussians from crossing the Saale at Merseburg, 
but was driven back by the king after a gallant and honora- 
ble resistance. Victor Francois de Broglie (1718 to 1804), 
whom we shall have frequent occasion to mention in the 
course of these pages, was one of the ablest of the French 
captains of the day. Jomini calls him the only French 



LIFE OF KALB. 27 

general engaged in the Seven Years' War who approved him- 
self as capable on all occasions. Of course Kalb, like all the 
other officers, had to suffer by the incompetence of Soubise; 
but, though involved in the general flight, his corps, togeth- 
er with that of Count St. Germain, had the merit of protect- 
ing the French army from total annihilation, and of making 
it possible for them to go into winter quarters in the 
Wetteraw. 

If the moral impression produced by this battle upon the 
German people was even more important than its strategic 
results, its deleterious effects upon the French army, and es- 
pecially upon the German portions of it, were no less per- 
ceptible. The halo which had encircled the French arms in 
Germany for more than a century was thoroughly dissipated 
by the 5th of November, 1757. The mind of Germany 
broke the fetters of France, recognized its inborn vigor, and 
began to return to its own. Without Rossbach, Lessing 
and Kant would have continued to preach in the wilderness. 
Even the hard-fisted hirelings who lived by selling their 
lives for a soldier's pittance, now scorned the French ser- 
vice, and deserted in squads and platoons to the Prussian 
colors, where they found more honor and glory. Kalb him- 
self estimates the number of deserters at that time at no 
less than ten thousand. During the winter of 1757 to 1758 
this defection assumed such proportions that the captains 
soon found it impossible to keep the number of men fit for 
duty at the prescribed standard. 

The evil naturally gave rise to the most varied proposals 
of amelioration ; but it was difficult, if not impossible, to 
strike at its root, as it was too intimately connected with 
the entire French military system of those times. A memo- 



28 LIFEOFKALB. 

rial submitted to Kalb for hi? opinion proposed to take the 
business of recruiting out of the hands of the captains, to 
combine all the German regiments into one organization, to 
consign the duty of canvassing for new soldiers for all the 
twenty-one German battalions to a single officer, and to se- 
lect one spot, as for instance Landau, for the establishment 
of a common depot for the reception and equipment of re- 
cruits, thereby securing not only cheaper and more reliable 
reenforcements, but also a better control over the soldiers 
(detailed to the various regiments. Kalb regarded so radical 
a measure in the face of the enemy as impracticable,® as it 
must wound the self-love and infringe the vested rights of 
the captains, and expose the German regiments to utter dis- 
organization. He showed that, under the French military- 
system, which, in this respect as in many others, could bear 
no comparison with the Prussian, the captain was at once 
officer, broker, and capitalist, bound, for a certain price, to 
provide the king with a given number of soldiers, and in- 
terested in selecting the best recruits, as frequent desertions 
would soon bring him into debt, and even subject him to 
the risk of bankruptcy. All the cheapness, then, which 
might be expected from the contemplated centralization of 
the recruitmg service, must be counterbalanced by the cor- 
responding depravation in point of quality which was all 
the more certain to ensue, as the officer in charge of the 
station could never have the same interest as the captains, 
in confining himself to the most acceptable material. But 
even admitting that 'the plan would reduce the expense of 
recruiting and diminish desertion, it nevertheless proceeded 
on the assumption that the German regiments should cease 
to be separated by different traditions, rights, and customs, 



I 



LIFEOFKALB, 29 

and should all be reduced to a common level — a measure 
which would run foul of the jealous vigilance with which 
each command watched over the preservation of its particu- 
lar capitulations, thus making it impracticable at all times, 
and suicidal in time of war. 

It would seem that these well-founded objections fore- 
stalled even an attempt at reform. Matters remained un- 
changed, or rather the evil increased to such an extent that 
about the close of the year 1758 Belleisle, the minister of 
war, wrote to Marshal Contade, directing him to fill up the 
waning ranks of the foreign regiments from the inhabitants 
of the hostile countries.^ What made improvement almost 
hopeless was the evil example set the privates by the major- 
ity of the officers, who were in the habit of deserting their 
posts w^ithout any furlough, to indulge in the winter amuse- 
ments of the capital. Every officer of higher rank did as he 
pleased, and subordination and discipline appeared to be en- 
tirely forgotten. 

We are not informed whether Kalb took part in all the 
movements of the Army of the Upper Rhine. In the year 
1758 we find no record of any remarkable event in his life. 
It is reported that on the 13th of April, 175 9, he was engaged in 
the victorious battle of Bergen with his regiment, which w^as 
posted in the village itself, and gallantly aided in repulsing 
the first furious onslaught of the allies. In 1760, the Loe- 
wendal regiment having been dissolved and divided among 
the regiments Anhalt and La Mark, Marshal Due de Broglie 
appointed Kalb assistant quartermaster-general {aide mare- 
chat general des logis) with the Army of the Upper Rhine, a 
position he continued to occupy to the close of the v/ar, and 
which, even before his promotion to the rank of lieutenant- 



30 LIFE OF KALB. 

colonel on the 19th of May, IV^I, brought him into intimate 
relations with the commander-in-chief. Broglie had a special 
preference for Kalb, and endeavored, by thus lifting him 
out of his regiment, to facilitate his advancement in the 
army, a design only frustrated by the early appointment of 
the duke himself to the supreme command. 

Henceforth, wherever we find the Army of the Upper 
Rhine, we find Kalb with it. The daily reports of de la 
Valette, the commissary-in- chief of that army, copies of which 
are before me, show, that until the conclusion of peace Kalb 
was not missing from his post a single day. His duties were 
of sach a nature that it is almost impossible to make a narra- 
tive of them. He distinguished himself not only by zeal and 
punctuality, but by knowledge and intelligence, and mUde 
constant progress in the esteem and friendship of Marshal 
Broglie, as well as of his brother and subordinate, the count 
of the same name. This intimacy weathered all the storms 
of the political horizon, and endured, as we shall find in the 
sequel, up to the latest hour of Kalb's life. He never after- 
ward took an important step without consulting the Brog- 
lies, and enjoyed their cordial sympathy in all his under- 
takings. When, in consequence of the battle of Vellinghausen, 
the duke became embroiled with Soubise, and was displaced 
in his command by that minion of the Pompadour, Kalb testi- 
fied his regret and resentment of this injustice in so unequiv- 
ocal a manner, as entailed upon him the avowed enmity of 
Soubise, which was not long in finding expression. No sooner 
had the hero of Rossbach resumed the command, than he 
undertook to remove Kalb — in whom he saw only the tool 
and spy of the Broglies — from his post, and to attach him, 
with the rank of major, to the Saxon corps then in the pay 



LIFE OF KALB. 31 

of France under the Count of Lusatia. In this event Kalb 
would have been discharged together with this corps at the 
close of hostilities, which was daily expected, without any 
claims of readmission into the French army. Of course he 
left not a stone unturned to escape such a consummation. 
He applied for a majority in one of the German regiments, 
in the contingency of the design of Soubise being carried into 
execution, and was prepared, if even this resource should fail, 
to resign his commission. Fortunately for him his immediate 
superiors. Generals de Vogue and de Salles interposed, and 
declared Kalb's efficient services indispensable to their depart- 
ments.'" 

If these intercessions alone were not sufficient, they were 
seconded by more important events, brought about by the 
carelessness of Soubise, which absorbed his attention to the 
entire oblivion of Kalb, who retained his post without further 
molestation. The French marshal, instead of obeying the 
instructions which confined him strictly to the defence of the 
positions occupied by Broglie, undertook to dispute the Duke 
Ferdinand of Brunswick's passage of the Diemel, but suffered 
himself to be surprised by the allies on the 24th of June, 
1762, on the banks of this river between Grebenstein and 
Wilhelmsthal, and to be driven, after an inglorious defeat, 
under the very guns of Cassel. Ferdinand even compelled 
the French commander to evacuate Gottingen and Munden, 
and to retreat behind the Fulda. 

This momentous battle of Wilhelmsthal, by which all the 
advantages gained by de Broglie were sacrificed, was the 
last important engagement in that quarter. Kalb shared in 
the disasters of the day, as is manifest by the responses of the 
Due de Broglie and of a M. de la Guiche, to whom he had 



32 LIFE OF KALB. 

sent a report of the defeat, whk)h unfortunately has not been 
preserved. Personally, however, he lost nothing, and was 
even fortunate in keeping his baggage, of which most of the 
French officers were robbed by the light troops of the allies. 
His courage and conduct on this occasion were rewarded by 
the order of merit, which had been established in 1759, and 
was bestowed upon Protestants in lieu of that of St. Louis, 
which only Catholics were allowed to wear. 

After the retreat from Hesse Cassel, the French head- 
quarters were again removed to Frankfort, in the walls or 
the vicinity of which town Kalb was stationed to the end of 
the war. While the preparations for the departure from 
Germany were in progress, he supported and advocated the 
interests of a number of the princely and noble families of 
the Wetteraw and adjoining provinces, who were entitled to 
compensation for supplies furnished the French troops, or liad 
other claims uj)on the French Government. Among others 
the Princes of Solms-Braunfels, Solms-Hohensolms, and 
Solms-Lich, were indebted to his prompt action and useful 
advice for the collection of their demands and the return of 
their advances. There is extant a thick bundle of letters, in 
which the gentry of the Wetteraw return thanks to Kalb, or 
commit their affiiirs to his keeping ; only one of all these 
documents, however, throws a ray of light upon the existing 
state of distress and confusion in that part of Germany. It 
was written on the 18th of November, 1762, by the dowager 
Princess of Solms-Braunfels, by birth a princess of Birkenfeld, 
a woman of intelligence and patriotism. " The news of the 
approaching peace which I read in your favor of the 9th 
instant," she says, " is most welcome in this part of Germany. 
We would have been still more fortunate if this joyful event 



LIFE OF KALB. 33 

could have occurred eight or nine weeks earlier. Now we 
are all ruined. Provisions are not to be had, and lords and 
lieges are staggering under such a load of debt, that fifty 
years will be required only to clear off the worst of the 
rubbish. God grant that peace may be concluded in Silesia 
as speedily as here, so that all Germany may at last breathe 
freely. Is it not our beloved country whose weal and woe 
are in question ? It gives me great pleasure to see that you, 
sir, take the same interest in its welfare." " 

The negotiations relating to the liquidation of these claims 
were protracted to the year 1763. Without disrespect to 
Kalb's memory, it is fair to presume that he did not lend his 
important services to the parties interested without some 
compensation, and that the business part of his functions in 
this matter was quite lucrative. Without some such conjec- 
ture it would be impossible to divine how a man originally 
without means, should be found the next year marrying on a 
fortune of fifty-two thousand francs. 

On the return of the army to France, Kalb went into 
garrison in the then French fortress of Landau, 
2* 



CHAPTER III. 

Kalb Out of Service. — Captain in the Anhalt Regiment. — He Goes 
TO Paris, but without Obtaining a New Commission. — Futile Ef- 
forts — Kalb's Betrothal and Marriage. — His Pecuniary Circum- 
stances. — He Resigns and Goes to Live in the Country. — A Year 
After he Seeks an Appointment in the Portuguese Army. — Count 
William of Lippe-Sciiaumburg. — Broglie's Letter of Introduction. 
— Visit at Buckeburg. — The Plan is Frustrated. — Secret Mission 
to America. — Its Natltie. — The Due de Choiseul, his Character 
and Policy. — Disturbances in the English Colonies of America. — 
Choiseul Resolves to Send Kalb There. — His Previous Relations 
TO THE Duke. — Kalb First Assigned to the Coast Survey. — His 
Destination Altered. — His Instructions. — His Departure for Hol- 
land. — First Report from the Hague. — Further Orders. — Kalb 
Goes to London, and Thence to America. 

A T the return of peace, Kalb, as an officer of experience 
^-^ and acknowledged ability, had every claim to be 
promoted to the rank of colonel ; nevertheless, one of the 
first measures adopted by the ministry in 1V63, was the aboli- 
tion of his office, which had been created only for the duration 
of the war. Under these circumstances it was fortunate for 
our hero that in 1761, shortly before quitting the regiment 
Loewendal, he had purchased a cajDtaincy in the regiment 
Anhalt. Notwithstanding his superior rank as lieutenant- 
colonel, and his services as assistant quartermaster-general, 
he had been constantly reported by that regiment as in com- 
mand of one of its companies during the last three years of 
the war. This precaution, so little consonant to our modern 



LIFEOFKALB. 35 

views of military propriety, now stood him in good stead, 
securing him a safe though humble retreat. 

For the present, then, Kalb was only a captain, with the 
rank of lieutenant-colonel ; but, of course, he was little dis- 
posed to rest content with this subordinate position. Very 
justly reflecting that with a court where all advancement de- 
pended upon the personal favor or caprice of those in power, 
personal solicitation was indispensable to success, he procured 
a furlough for six months and hastened to Paris, determined 
to secure a position commensurate with his rank in one of the 
foreign regiments. He applied to the Due de Choiseul and 
the Prince Soubise, put his personal friends and late superiors, 
General Wurmser, Saarfeld, and Yogue in motion, and en- 
deavored to make interest with Dubois, the functionary of the 
war department to whom the nomination of officers was 
intrusted. He received on all hands the most unqualified 
approbation of his services and the fairest promises for the 
future ; but the professions were not made good, and the 
summer passed away without any change in Kalb's condition. 
About this time a vacant lieutenant-colonelcy for which he 
made application, was bestowed upon an ofiicer sustaining 
more intimate relations to the minister. There were rumors 
of a plan to appoint eight additional staff oflicers for each of 
the three armies of the kingdom, four of each of the eight to 
be assistant quartermasters-general. Kalb solicited the recom- 
mendation of the Marquis de Castries, who pledged him his 
support for one of these positions, and made every effort in 
his behalf; but the plan was never carried out, and our hero 
had garnered up an additional disappointment. 

Weary of hope deferred and thoroughly tired of his 
fruitless stay at Paris, although his furlough lasted till Octo- 



36 LIFE OF KALB. 

ber, he was on the point of returning to the province and 
assuming the command of his company, when an unexpect- 
ed turn in his private affairs put an end, for the time, to his 
ambitious schemes. This sudden event was his betrothal, 
shortly followed by his marriage with Anna Elizabeth 
Lmilie van Robais.'^ 

Among Kalb's numerous acquaintances dating from his 
then stay at the capital, was that of M. Peter van Robais, 
formerly a cloth manufacturer at Abbeville, but who had re- 
tired from business for several years. He was the grandson 
of a Hollander whom Colbert had induced to settle in 
France, and whose deserts in improving the cloth manufac- 
ture of France had been rewarded by Louis XV. with a 
patent of nobility. The business established by him rapidly 
became one of the most extensive in the country, and not 
only laid the foundation of a large patrimony, but proved a 
source of abundant income to his descendants. Peter van 
Robais, since making over the factory to his son-in-law, lived 
with his wife and the above-named younger daughter in 
plain, but comfortable retirement at Courbevoye, near Paris. 
It was probably the community of religious persuasion — 
both being Protestants — which first brought him in contact 
with Kalb. The latter soon became a welcome frequenter of 
his house, and still more quickly won the heart of the young 
lady, who is represented as accomplished, sprightly, and 
beautiful, and who plighted him her troth in the winter of 
1763 to 1764. The wedding took place on the 10th of April, 
1764, the marriage ceremony being performed in the Protes- 
tant chapel of the Dutch legation. This union proved to be 
one of the happiest ever known. In marked contrast to the 
dissolute manners of the time, Kalb lived exclusively for his 



LIFE OF KALB. 37 

family, while bis wife, in her turn, was no less devotedly 
attached to her husband than solicitous of the welfare of her 
children. The warmth of this attachment remained un- 
altered to the hour of Kalb's death, and his last letters to 
his wife breathe the same fervor which had inspired the first 
and all the others. Even the pecuniary circumstances of the 
new family were, from the first, all that could be desired. 
While Kalb himself could only contribute his pension and 
52,000 francs, his bride, in addition to a rich trousseau, re- 
ceived 135,376 francs ; and in 1767, after the decease of her 
parents and grandparents, she inherited the homestead at 
Courbevoye and 205,406 francs, a fortune still further in- 
creased in 1776, when the death of some collateral relatives 
brought her other real estate and 84,000 francs in money ; so 
that the entire property of husband and wife must have 
amounted to about half a million of francs, or a hundred 
thousand dollars, a sum which, for those times, was very 
considerable. I have been particular in extracting these 
estimates from the official calculations and distributions be- 
fore me, because they constitute the best refutation to the 
surmises occasionally thrown out in the United States, that 
Kalb took service under a foreign flag for the benefit of his 
exchequer. 

Under the circumstances it was but natural for Kalb to 
give up his company and to remain at or near Paris with his 
young wife in the neighborhood of her parents. He aban- 
doned his former projects, and was glad to retire in 1764 
upon his pension as lieutenant-colonel. 

This voluntary repose, however, was destined to be of 
short duration. A year had not elapsed since his marriage 
when Kalb, tired of inaction, made another vigorous effort 



38 LIFE OF KALB. 

to enter into service. The celebrated Count William of 
Schaamburg-Lippe, reared in the martial school of Frederick 
the Great and the Duke of Brunswick, who, during the clos- 
ing years of the Seven Years' War had served in Portugal, 
and had successfully repulsed the invasion of the Spaniards, 
had returned to Germany in 1764, charged, among other 
tilings, with raising three German regiments for the Portu- 
guese service, to prepare for the apprehended return of hos- 
tilities. Kalb at once resolved to offer the Portuguese field* 
marshal his services as Brigadier, in the hope of returning, 
after a few successful campaigns, to the French army as a 
general. His old patron, the Due de Broglie, a personal ac- 
quaintance of Count William, approved of Kalb's design, 
and not only gave him a warm letter of recommendation 
himself, but procured him another from the English general, 
Robert Gierke,*^ who was on terms of intimate friendship 
with Count Lippe. 

" Lieutenant-colonel de Kalb," says Broglie, " is one of 
the best and most efficient officers of my acquaintance, and 
as expert in the details of the service as versed in the 
science of war. In the late war I have found him extremely 
useful and reliable, and can recommend him unqualifiedly as 
an excellent general." "M. de Kalb," wrote the duke's 
brother, the Count de Broglie, at the same time, " went 
through the whole of the late war with me as assistant 
quartermaster-general, and is deserving of your protection 
in the highest degree. To what my brother has written in 
reference to him I can only add that deKalb is an officer no 
less intelligent and well-informed than brave and indefatiga- 
ble. I doubt whether you could find a more fitting man for 
the organization and instruction of your troops. It is neither 



LIFEOFKALB. 39 

the want of means nor the desire of riches that prompts Lieu 
tenant-colonel de Kalb to seek service abroad. His circum- / 
stances are very good, but he craves a congenial occupation, t 
his present inactivity having become insupportable to him." \ "i 

Armed with these w^eighty recommendations, Kalb left 
for Biickeburg in the beginning of March, 1765, in company 
of a M. de Trevisany, and presented himself to Count 
William on the 16th day of the same month. His reception 
was most cordial ; the count did his utmost to induce the 
Portuguese Government to make the appointment, but the 
negotiations, after being protracted for two years, fell to the 
ground, because the pending difficulties were peaceably ad- 
justed, contrary to expectation, and the idea of enlisting 
loreigu troops renounced. Alter his return in 1766, Kalb 
even conceived tlie design of going to Lisbon himself to 
speed his suit, but was strongly dissuaded by Count Lippe, 
and desisted. When the latter repaired to Lisbon by way 
of Paris in 1767, Kalb had already left France for the Hague k 
on a secret mission intrusted to bim by the Due de Choiseul. 

The task thus imposed upon our hero introduced him to 
the labyrinth of European politics, and turned his fortunes 
into a direction in which they were destined to continue 
through life. To enable us to follow him intelligently it will 
be necessary to enter into a somewhat detailed examination 
of the plans of the French minister, with particular reference 
to his attitude toward the English Government. 

The Due de Choiseul (1719 to 1785) having distinguished 
himself as French Ambassador at Rome and at Vienna, be- 
tween 1753 and 1758, had assumed the reins of government 
toward the close of the latter year. Although mainly indebt- 
ed for his elevation to the favor of Madame de Pompadour, he 



40 LIFE OF KALB. 

was yet one of the greatest if tiot the greatest French states 
man since the days of Richelieu. The latter achieved his 
diplomatic and political triumphs at the rising tide of the na- 
tional power, and while the monarchy was scaling the pinnacle 
of European supremacy, while the administration of the latter, 
from 1758 to 1770, coincides with the national decay and the 
waning authority of the sovereign ; but this very palpable 
difference must not prevent us from doing justice to the great 
qualities and eminent merits of either. Choiseul directed 
against England the same untiring zeal, the same iron forti- 
tude, and the same comprehensive energy which Richelieu had 
exercised to break the power of Austria. If success did not 
always reward his efforts, the fault was not so much in the 
intrepid statesman as in the altered state of political affairs. 
Almost in the same year in which Choiseul assumed the direc- 
tion of the French Government, the triumph of British 
supremacy on land and sea was achieved on the battle-fields 
of Germany and on the heights of Quebec. The constant aim 
of Pitt and of those who had succeeded him in office, to hum- 
ble the Bourbons at any cost, and to reduce them to the 
former limits of their power, was at last accomplished. At 
the peace of Paris (1763), France lost all her possessions on 
the American continent, retaining only her Newfoundland 
fishery and two little islands, which were not to be garrisoned 
with more than fifty men ; she was driven from her conquests 
on the Ganges and her advantageous positions on the Senegal, 
and was even compelled to look on while England snatched 
the whole of Florida from the grasp of the Spaniards to pun- 
ish them for their French alliance. The cabinet of Versailles 
had lost credit at home and abroad ; the army, by a succession 
of defeats, had forfeited its^ancient fame. The navy and the 



LIFEOFKALB. 41 

foreign commerce of the country had almost ceased to exist. 
Even the coasting trade was languishing; the few remaining 
craft huddled in the ports, and almost dreaded to navigate 
the Mediterranean. Against an enemy thus powerful and thus 
implacable, who knew neither fear nor favor, who welcomed 
and fostered as England's gain every incident and every bar- 
gain fraught with injury to France — against such a foe but a 
single course was open to a French minister who understood 
his position : it was, to direct all the arms and all the policy, 
all the spirit and enterprise of his people against the interests 
of England. From the first day of his official life Choiseul 
acted up to his appreciation of this necessity. As ambassador 
he had essentially advanced the schemes of the Abbe Bernis 
for a French alliance with Austria ; on assuming the ministry 
of foreign affiiirs, it was one of his first acts to prepare 
and subsequently (in July, 1761) to conclude the so-called 
Bourbon family compact, a defensive and offensive alliance of 
France with Spain, Naples, and Parma, the whole drift of 
which was hostile to England. ChoiseuPs next object was 
the restoration of the French navy, and the resumption of the 
struggle for the mastery of the seas. Ere many years had 
elapsed, a splendid navy of sixty-four line of battle-ships and 
thirty-six frigates, commanded by distinguished leaders such 
as Bougainville, and manned with sturdy tars and an excellent 
corps of marines, was awaiting the return of the war which, 
this time, promised to break out in America. 

In the English colonies of this continent, the attempts of 
the mother country to exercise the power of taxation over 
them had produced great discontent and indignation. Tho 
enormous debt of the United Kingdom, greatly increased in 
the course of the Seven Years' War, seemed to make it neces- 



42 LIFEOFKALB. 

• 

sary, as even Pitt had proposed to raise contributions from the 
colonies. Not long after the conclusion of peace, on the 22d 
of March 1765, the Grenville ministry procured the passage 
of the Stamp Act, which was intended to go into force on the 
1st of November of the same year, but which was practically 
annulled by the obstinate resistance of the colonists, and was 
formally repealed on the 28th of March, 1768. It was on this 
occasion that the first symptoms of colonial insubordination 
attracted attention on the other side of the Atlantic, magnified 
by the distance, and exaggerated by the voice of rumor. No 
one welcomed them more cordially than Choiseul. Hereto- 
fore he had endeavored to make up for the ground lost in 
America and the East Indies by stimulating the prosperity of 
the French Antilles, and extending the influence of France in 
the Mediterranean. In consequence of his measures St. 
Domingo, Guadaloupe, and Martinique began to develop their 
immense resources, and to attain an incalculable importance 
to the mother country. Ever since 1763, his emissaries, 
among whom was Dumouriez, who became so notorious in 
the French revolution, had labored to extend the sceptre 
of France over the island of Corsica, which, like Canada, pro- 
duced the most excellent ship timber, and which promised to 
furnish a safe harbor and a convenient entrepot for the Le- 
vantine trade. In the ports of the other African States his 
agents were no less indefatigable in enlarging the sphere of 
his influence. The importance of these operations in the Le- 
vante was still further enchanced by the circumstance that the 
manufactories of Languedoc had engaged largely in the pro- 
duction of " Londres," a fabric of the sale of which England had 
hitherto enjoyed a monopoly in these regions. The increased 
number of counting-houses in Asia Minor, Syria, and Palestine, 



LIFEOFKALB. 43 

I of course raised the standing of the French consulates. At 
i the same time Choiseul was intent upon the plan, resumed, a 
generation later, by Napoleon, of bringing Egypt under 
French suzerainty, and making it the base of operations for 
expeditions in the Mediterranean and Indian Seas, by which it 
was intended to expel the English from the coast of Coro- 
mandel and the shores of the Ganges, and to lend a vigorous 
support to the operations of Hyder Ali.'* French officers dis- 
cipHned the Sultan's troops, and improved the organization 
of the Turkish army; French emissaries fomented hostilities 
against England in the East Indies ; nor were the farthest 
East and the remote West more closely watched, than the 
courts and embassies of Europe. In short, there was not a 
single point where the wary and alert minister had not his 
agents, spies, and instruments for the aggrandizement of 
France and the injury of England. 

As was to be expected, the perplexities in which Great 
Britain was involved by the dispute with her American 
colonies, interested Choiseul in the highest degree/^ Here 
was the vulnerable point where he could hope to wound the 
hated adversary, here was a rest for the lever with which 
to unseat him, here was the long-desired opportunity of 
restoring France to her former influence and her position of 
arbiter in the councils of Europe. The earliest rumors of 
the resistance of the Americans to the efforts of the mother 
country to raise revenue from them, had no sooner pene- 
trated to the French capital (1V64), than Choiseul sent an 
agent, in the person of M. de Pontleroy, on a tour of observa- 
tion, from which the latter returned in the year 1766, bring- 
ing the most favorable reports of what he had heard and 
seen." 



44 LIFEOFKALB. 

• 

He described the land as rich in all the productions of 
the soil, especially grain and iron; he enlarged upon its 
inexhaustible stock of timber and its spacious liarbors ; he 
represented the inhabitants as enterprising, as rapidly im- 
proving in wealth and numbers, and as thoroughly conscious 
of their strength. The English troops were found to be 
scattered over the country in small detachments, so as to be 
able to accomplish very little. It was suggested that even 
England could not but be in the imminence of a revolution, 
which, indeed, she had herself accelerated in annexing 
Canada, and thus relieving her colonies of the fear of a 
French invasion. 

This flattering report was corroborated by the proud 
answer of the Assembly of Massachusetts to the royal 
governor, by the bold demands of the colonies, by the revolu- 
tionary speeches of Patrick Henry, by the circumspect but 
decided attitude of James Otis, and by the opposition of the 
American people to the measures of the British ministry. 
In all this there was reason enough to suppose that the day 
of reckoning, and the hour of England's humiliation, had at 
last arrived. 

The further progress of events in America, though far 
from rapid, was steadily adverse to the interests of the 
mother country. The colonies disputed the right of Parlia- 
ment to lay taxes, and declared, as early as 1766, that the 
will of the people is the final and only source of supreme 
power. It was especially the resistance of Massachusetts 
and New York which exasperated the English cabinet, and 
became the subject of a heated debate in the House of Lords 
toward the end of March and the beginning of April, 1767. 
" Let us deliberate no longer," cried Charles Townsend ; 



LIFEOFKALB. 45 

" let US act with vigor, nov/, while we can call the colonies 
ours. If you do not, they will very soon be lost for ever." 

The acrimonious tone of the discussion, the overwrought 
coloring of the opposition offered to the crown by the colonies, 
and the dread, partly real and partly aifectcd, of the break- 
ing out of actual hostilities, professed by the Parliament and 
the ministers, combinei to mislead Choiseul into the belief 
that the great American insurrection was at hand. And yet 
the tax on tea was not voted before the 15th of May, 1767. 
If he anticipated the fulfilment of his wishes by eight years, 
the error w^as highly pardonable in one unacquainted with 
the tenacity of Anglo-American forbearance, and with the 
centrifugal tendencies of these new settlements, unsuited in 
every respect to revolutionary action. But from this time 
Choiseul sought in every quarter accurate accounts of the 
progress of opinion in America, alike in the writings of 
Franklin, the reports current among the best-informed 
merchants, and even in New England sermons, from which 
curious extracts are to this day preserved among the State 
Papers of France. His judgment on events, though biassed 
by national hatred, was more impartial and clear than that 
of any British minister who succeeded Shelburne. 

In order to sift all vague and extravagant rumors, and 
ascertain the real state of the case, Choiseul resolved once 
more to send an agent to America, and selected for that 
purpose the subject of this memoir, who, after a retirement 
of several years, had been reintroduced to the minister, some 
months before, by the intervention of the Prince Soubise. 
At the close of the year 1766, in the confident expectation 
of a rupture with England, Choiseul had increased the 
complement of the regiments, and placed the northwestern 



46 LIFEOFKALB. 

• 

coast in a state of defence. These measures called for the 
appointment of additional engineers and staff-officers, and 
the formation of a new staff for the northern department. 
Kalb was designed for one of these positions, and was 
charged, in the first instance, with the survey of the frontiers, 
under General Bourcet. " You are hereby informed," wrote 
Choiseul to Kalb from Versailles, the 20th of April, 1767, 
*' that his Majesty has included you among the list of officers 
who are to be employed this year in the survey of the 
country. You will visit the coast from Dunkirk to Calais, 
and take up your headquarters in the first-named of these 
towns. You will there receive, from the paymaster of the 
forces, five hundred francs for the duration of your services. 
I rely upon receiving accurate reports of the execution of 
your mission." 

Kalb repaired to Versailles on the 22d of April, to receive 
the minister's final instructions. He was not a little aston- 
ished to be told by M. Dubois, the chief clerk of the minis- 
try of war, that his destination had been altered in the 
mean time, and that the duke's private secretary, M. Appony, 
was directed to draw up special instructions for a secret 
mission to America, on which Kalb was to be appointed. 
Dubois therefore advised him to see Appony before waiting 
on the minister. The secretary communicated to Kalb the 
instructions he had written at Choiseul's dictation, which were 
soon after handed him by Dubois. They read as follows : 

" 1. M. de Kalb will repair to Amsterdam, and there direct 
his particular attention to the rumors in circulation about the 
English colonies. Should they appear to be well founded, 
he will immediately maka preparations for a journey to 
America. 



LIFEOFKALB. 47 

" 2. Ob his arrival, he will inquire into the intentions of 
the inhabitants, and endeavor to ascertain whether they are 
in need of good engineers and artillery officers, or other in- 
dividuals, and whether they should be supplied with them. 

" 3. He will inform himself of their facilities for procuring 
supplies, and will find out what quantities of munitions of 
war and provisions they are able to procure. 

" 4. He will acquaint himself with the greater or lesser 
strength of their purpose to withdraw from the English 
Government. 

" 5. He will examine their resources in troops, fortified 
places, and forts, and will seek to discover their plan of re- 
volt, and the leaders who are expected to direct and con- 
trol it. 

" 6. Great reliance is placed in the intelligence and address 
of M. de Kalb in the pursuit of a mission requiring an un- 
common degree of tact and shrewdness, and he is expected 
to report progress as often as i:)ossible." 

Kalb at first showed very little inclination to accept this 
delicate commission. He started various objections, and 
dwelt particularly on the numberless difficulties growing 
out of his total want of preparation for such a journey. 
Without combating these arguments, Dubois referred him 
to the Due de Choiseul. 

" Do not decline the mission with which I have intrusted 
you," said the latter. " I know that it is difficult, and re- 
quires great sagacity. But I have fixed my choice upon you 
after much deliberation, and know that you will see no rea- 
son to regret it. Ask of me the means which you think ne- 
cessary for its execution ; I will furnish you with them all." 

Kalb hesitated no longer, the minister having given him 



48 LIFE OP KALB. 

• 

time to arrange his private affairs, and allowed him to post- 
pone his departure to the end of May. On the 2d of that 
month he'was already furnished by Choiseul with his pass- 
ports, to Holland in the first instance, with twelve Imndred 
francs for his travelling expenses, and with letters of intro- 
duction to the French ambassadors at the Hague and at 
Brussels, and was directed to forward all despatches through 
their hands, and to enclose secret communications to the 
duke separately sealed, in his official reports. He left for 
Holland in the beginning of June, and dated his first report to 
Choiseul from the Hague, the 15th of July, 1767, as follows: 
" To inform myself of all the occurrences in the American 
eolonies, I have now visited all the seaports of Holland 
w^ithout being able to come to any definite conclusion as to 
the state of affairs in that quarter. The English give out 
that hostilities are entirely at an end, in consequence of the 
repeal of the stamp act and the other obnoxious measures; 
but this may be said for effect, and to conceal the actual 
condition of things. Two or three days ago I conversed 
with a German who has been settled in Pennsylvania these 
fifteen years, and who is now recruiting fresh colonists. By 
his account, agitation is so far from being allayed that but a 
very trifling provocation would suffice to drive the malcon- 
tents into open revolt. The provincial assembly, he says, 
have resolved to maintain their privileges at any cost ; and 
twenty thousand English troops, widely scattered over the 
country, could hardly cope with the forces at the disposal of 
the colonists, which number four hundred thousand militia, 
and could easily be increased. The Germans of this and the 
neighboring provinces alone— continues my informant— inde- 
pendently of the numerous Irishmen living there, can raise 



LIFE OF KALB. 49 

sixty thousand men, nor is there any lack of means for the 
defence of the liberties of the country. As to other resour- 
ces for the successful conduct of the war, this man could 
give me no information. Indeed, I am only repeating his 
assertions, without being convinced of their truth. 

"I therefore await your commands, Monseigneur, to be- 
take myself to Philadelphia or some other point in the colo- 
nies, and report to you in reference to all the heads specified 
in my letter of instructions.. It should be observed that the 
English colonies, or rather the mercantile companies who 
have large interests there, continue to solicit colonists in 
Germany, in public and in secret, as before. I have seen 
twelve hundred of these emigrants at Rotterdam, travelling 
from Cologne by way of Maestricht and Herzogenbusch, as 
they were cut oif from the Rhine, because the King of Prus- 
sia has forbidden them to pass through his dominions. These 
people have been shipped in four vessels, two of which have 
set sail, while the remainder are only waiting for luggage." 

Soon after the despatch of this letter news arrived from 
America which announced a more peaceful state of feeling 
as having resulted from the concessions made by Great 
Britain, and which pointed to the probability of a truce be- 
tween the mother country and her colonies. Kalb there- 
fore regarded a longer sojourn in Holland as super- 
fluous, and wrote on the 11th of August for further instruc- 
tions. 

" As it is possible, and even probable," answered Choiseul, 
from Compiegne, the 19th of August, "that this quiet will 
not be of long duration, it is the will of His Majesty that you 
should make immediate preparations for a speedy tour to 
■America, in order to satisfy yourself by personal inspection 
3 



50 LIFE O F K ALB. 

• 

as to the condition of the country, its harbors, ships, land 
forces, resources, weapons, munitions of war, and provisions — 
in short, as to the means at our command if disposed, in case 
of a war with England, to make a diversion in that direction. 
You will adopt the greatest precautions in sending me your 
report, and will, immediately upon your arrival, inform me 
where to direct such letters as I shall have occasion to write 
you." 

In obedience to this order Kalb quitted the Hague for 
London about the close of September, 1767, after having 
spent the greater part of the month in writing out for Choiseul 
a report in reference to such subjects of France as the Russian 
Government had induced to settle in its territories. On the 
1st of October he writes from London, " I arrived here after 
a sh(»rt, though stormy passage. The packet boat from Fal- 
mouth to New York does not leave, as I was told in Holland, 
on the first, but on the second Saturday of every mouth; so 
that I could not go by that line before the 10th of October. 
I prefer, therefore, to take the merchantman Hercules, Captain 
Hommet, which sets sail from Gravesend to-morrow for Phila- 
delphia. I shall report as soon as I can do so with any secu- 
rity. Be so good, Monseigneur, as to send your commands 
and answers in the same (my) cypher to Madame de Kalb ; 
she will forward them to me in pursuance of directions 
already given, and still to be given. It is hoped that these 
letters will be less likely to arouse the suspicion and curiosity 
of the various correspondents and agents, of whose services 
I must necessarily avail myself. In conclusion, Monseigneur, 
I would recall to your mind the promises kindly made me on 
my departure from France, beseeching you to be a father and 
protector to my wife and children if it should be written in 



LIFEOFKALB. 51 

the book of fate that the journey upon which I am setting out 
should lead directly to my final resting-place." 

Kalb went on board of the Hercules on the 4th of Octo- 
ber. The voyage to Philadelphia — long, perilous, and fraught 
with hardships beyond all precedent even for those times — 
lasted until the 12th of January, 1768. 



CHAPTEK IT. 

Kalb in America. — His Fiest Eeport from Philadelphia. — Public Sen- 
timent. — Eneroy of Boston. — Moderation op Philadelphia. — Con- 
duct OP the Troops and their General. — The Colonies too Weak to 
Repel Force by Force. — They Desire no Foreign Alliance. — Their 
Natural Advantages at the Opening of Hostilities. — Kalb's Second 
Report from Philadelphia, dated the 20th of January. — The Dis- 
turbances Increase. — Distrust and Discontent of the People. — 
Commercial Importance of the Colonies for the Mother Country. — 
Kalb goes to New York. — Is Shipwrecked in New York Bay. — Har- 
rowing Particulars of the Accident. — Kalb's Third Report from 
New York, February 25, 1768. — The Opposition of the Colonies on 
THE Increase. — ^The Question of Taxation. — Bad Policy of the Eng- 
lish Government. — Independent Spirit of the American People. — 
Their National Existence must be the Wobk of Time. — Strength op 
THE English Garrisons. — Kalb's Fourth Report from Boston, March 
2, 1768. — Greater Acrimony in New England. — Massachusetts takes 
THE Lead in the Resistance to English Measures. — The Mother 
Country will Give Way. — Flourishing Condition op the Commerce 
AND Internal Industry of New England. — Kalb goes to Halifax. — 
Its Harbor. — The Intended Journey Across Lake Champlain Given 
Up on Account of the Thaw. — Kalb's Opinion of the Canadians. — 
They are no longer French in their Way of Thinking. — Kalb re- 
turns TO Europe from New York, end of April, 1768. — Arrives at 
Dover on the 1st of June, and at Paris on the 12th. — His Audience 
with Choiseul is Delayed. — Kalb's Estimate of the English Re- 
sources is Considered Extravagant by the Minister. — Kalb Submits 
Weekly Translations op His Letters and Newspapers from Amer- 
ica. — His Memorial of August 6, 1768. — Summary op Kalb's Opin- 
ions. — They Correspond with those op the Most Able and Best In- 
formed op his Contemporaries. — Toward the Close of the Year 1768 
Choiseul's Interest in Kalb and his Reports on America Dimin- 
ishes. — Corsica Absorbs his Attention. — Choiseul's Plans in Regard 
TO Spain. — Finds Fault with Kalb's Return as Premature. — Assigns 



LIFEOFKALB. 63 

Him a Reward and Promises Him a Brigadier's Commission. — Ceioi- 
seul's Fall. — Kalb's Deserts under His Direction. — Political Situa- 
tion IN General. — Yergennes Subsequently Revives the Designs of 
Ceoiseul. 



TTTHEISr Kalb landed in America, the excitement caused 
^ ' by the adoption and repeal of the stamp act, instead of 
being allayed, had been considerably augmented by the tax 
on tea voted in May, 1767, by the New York billeting act, and 
the force bill. It Avas just in January, 1768, that Massachu- 
setts renewed her agitation against the home government, 
and invited all the colonies to cooperate in convening a con- 
gress, which was to obtain a certain and speedy redress of 
grievances. 

Let us now hear Kalb's opinion of the state of things, 
without forgetting that as a stranger in a foreign land it was 
only by degrees that he could acquire an understanding of 
what was going on around him. 

" I am beginning to study the matters relating to my 
commission," such is the literal import of his first letter to 
Choiseul, written the 15th of January, 1768, three days after 
his arrival at Philadelphia, " and am in a fair way to pro- 
cure reliable information as to the discontent produced in 
the colonies by the passage of the stamp act. This afiair is 
very far from being adjusted. It is not the case, as was 
alleged in Holland, that the repeal of the act was voluntary 
on the part of the Government ; on the contrary, although 
each province has its own separate and distinct assembly, 
they all refused to acquiesce in the measure with the same 
decision and unanimity as if they had jointly deliberated 
upon their line of action. Some, it is true, were more violent 
than others, but the substance of each refusal was the same. 



54 LIFE OF KALB. 

The most violent of these provincial assemblies were those 
of Boston and PhilaSelpnia, where the commissioners of the 
new impost were even threatened in their persons. Boston 
has promptly renounced all commercial intercourse with 
London, refuses to import any more wares, and expresses a 
determination to content itself with the productions and do- 
mestic fabrics of the country. The women even discard tea 
and foreign sugar, and we are constantly told of the activity 
of the spinning-wheels, which have been at work, ever since 
the promulgation of the act, to supersede the use oi* English 
linens. With the same object the women have resolved to 
dispense with silks and articles of luxury, until their own 
country shall be in a condition to furnish them. The ques- 
tion is how long they will adhere to this resolution. I do 
not believe that Philadelphia will adopt the same policy. 
Although the youngest of the chief towns of the north, it is 
the wealthiest and most luxurious. Besides, the provincia,! 
assembly of Pennsylvania has evinced greater moderation in 
this respect. For the moment it is difficult to tell what the 
end will be. All depends upon the policy of the court, 
which promises to be a conciliatoiy one, as the advantage 
derived by the British people from their connection with the 
colonies is too great to permit the Government to stop short 
of any efforts to preserve this invaluable magazine of raw 
productions, and this most profitable market for its manu- 
factures. 

" During the last outbreaks the troops have treated the 
inhabitants with much greater circumspection than before, 
while the commanders have been most careful to avoid any 
cause of irritation. The commanding general, who has 
power to convene the estates of each province, to preside over 



LIFE OP KALB. 55 

them, and to suppress all attempts to impair the authority 
of the laws, pretends to ignore all the libels and pasquib 
which have appeared in public, and the names of the authors 
of which are in everybody's mouth. This circumstance in- 
duces me to suppose that the court have given orders to this 
effect, and have intended nothing but a simple experi- 
ment. 

"The present condition of the colonies is not such as to 
enable them to repel force by force ; but their value to the 
mother country is their best safeguard against any violation 
of their real or imaginary privileges. I have not yet found 
time to inform myself as to their troops and other warlike 
resources, but am on the point of making a tour through all 
the provinces, and to open correspondence at all important 
points, in order to enable myself to acquaint you more fully 
with all matters of interest. 

" If you have any commands for me, be pleased, Monseig- 
neur, to have them written in the same cypher, and sent to 
my wife, who has the necessary directions for forwarding 
them. 

"The remoteness of this population from their centre of 
government makes them free and enterprising ; but at bottom 
they are but little inclined to shake off the English suprem- 
acy with the aid of foreign powers. Such an alliance would 
appear to them to be fraught with danger to their liberties. 
Their taxes are very light ; indeed, with the exception of the 
duties on imported goods, they amount to almost nothing. 
The crown has even relieved the colonies of the support of a 
regiment of four thousand men, so that now all the troops 
stationed in the colonies are in the pay of England. Tliis 
policy is evidently necessary under the circumstances. The 



66 LIFE OF KALB. 

troops are frequently changed* every regiment being recalled 
after the lapse of three years, and replaced by another. 

" In case of an insurrection the colonists would have 
nothing but their militia to depend upon, v^'hich, though 
very numerous, is not in the least disciplined. On the other 
hand, the immense extent of the country, the want of ready 
money, the discord amon^- the governors of the various prov- 
inces, all independent of each other, present great obstacles 
to the formation of an army, and the speedy opening of hos- 
tilities in the respective neighborhoods. The odium in 
which the House of Commons is held, is only equalled by 
the popularity of Pitt. He is called the defender of liberty, 
because he was the only one who opposed the stamp act in 
Parliament." 

This first letter was shortly followed by a second, dated 
at Philadelphia, the 20th of January 1768, which contains 
more of the personal impressions and self-acquired views of 
Kalb, while the first depended largely on hearsay. 

"I had the honor, Monseigneur," he continues, "of 
writing you on the 15th of this month. I hope my letter has 
arrived in safety. I shall avail myself of every ship sailing 
from this port to report progress. 

" By a letter from ray wife, dated the 7th of October, just 
received, I learn with the greatest alarm that my last from 
Holland and London had been opened before reaching you. 
This gives me reason to apprehend that those sent from this 
country will either meet with the same fate or not reach 
your hands at all. In the latter case I should be cut oif 
from all news from you, without being able to estimate the 
perils growing out of such a state of things. 

" I am inclined to think, therefore, that it would be best 



LIFE OF KALB. 57 

to abridge my stay in this country, and to return home with 
additional precautions, if this should meet with yourapprov 
al. Permit me, therefore, to set out at the end of April. I 
shall await your commands to this end, and in the mean time 
shall use every elFort to perform the task imposed upon me, 
taking measures to provide myself with full information on 
the affairs of this country after my departure. 

" The disturbances caused by the stamp act seem to in- 
crease from day to day, instead of diminishing. The English 
Government have certainly repealed the law, on discovering 
that they were without the means of enforcing it ; but they 
have sanctioned another act of the House of Commons, tax- 
ing tea, paper, and glass, which the colonies import from the 
mother country. This is a circuitous way of attaining the 
object of Parliament ; at any other time it would have ex- 
cited no opposition, as the Government has always exercised 
the right of taxing goods exported to the colonies." 

But the stamp act has so chafed the minds of the people, 
that the act last mentioned, which at any other time would 
have attracted but little attention, is now regarded in the 
light of a fresh attempt upon their liberties. It is said that 
the impost has only changed its name, and that the revenue, 
formerly sought to be raised by means of the stamp act, is 
now the object of the tea tax ; that it is contrary to all the 
rights of the subjects of the crown to tax them without their 
consent ; that the colonies are on a level with all other sub- 
jects, and that, as they have no representatives in the lower 
house, England ought to be content with the profits it derives 
from selling them worthless goods at high prices, and pur- 
chasing necessaries from them for a song ; that the enormous 
amounts of Spanish gold and silver annually shipped from the 
3* 



58 LIFE OF KALB. 

colonies to England, without ^y return of specie payments, 
sufficiently prove that the ultimate advantage is not on the 
side of the Americans, and that, finally, this inequality in the 
weights of trade makes it evident that they are treated more 
like slaves than like children and fellow-citizens. These acts, 
therefore, are considered so many violations of their privi- 
leges, and revive all their grievances which the colonists claim 
to have suffered at the hands of the home government. The 
Americans complain that they are prevented from working 
their mines ; that prohibitions were launched against their 
smithies and forges, so soon as it was discovered that the 
manufacture of iron had so much improved as to be almost 
equal to that of England ; that government have prevented 
the establishment of various manufactories; that, in conse- 
quence of unjust interdictions, the colonies have lost their 
trade with New Spain, the Spanish Main, and the islands of 
foreign powers, thus being deprived of the supplies of ready 
money required to make their English payments. The Ameri- 
cans further contend that they are burdened with troops, not 
for purposes of defence, but for those of subjugation ; that the 
expenses of constructing and repairing the barracks and fur- 
nishing the supphes fall upon the provinces; that they have 
been forbidden to expand their paper issues, while they find 
it impossible to maintain their commerce at home and abroad 
with the little ready money remaining, as almost all the gold 
and silver has gone across the ocean, and that in consequence 
it is impossible to meet accruing liabilities; that faiUires are 
occurrmg every day, and that universal distress must needs 
ensue. 

" In my opinion the diminution of specie is real, but there 
is reason to suppose that it is hoarded on account of the dis- 



LIFEOFKALB. 59 

turbed state of affairs. I cannot believe tbe statements made 
in regard to the suras exported to England ; it is pretended 
that the article of tea alone has netted them three hundred 
thousand pounds. As soon as I can obtain an insight into 
this matter, T shall report upon it. The result of all these 
facts is, that the colonies are more than ever willing to re- 
trench their expenditures, and live exclusively upon their own 
productions. In Boston a number of wealthy men have just 
formed an association for the purpose of assisting the various 
trades and manufactures by loans of money. If the country 
adheres to its determination to import no goods from Eng- 
land, the trade and the credit of the mother country must in- 
evitably fall off, its manufactories must fail, and its working- 
men be deprived of their livelihoods. And if the court should 
undertake to cure this evil by imposing additional taxes or 
prohibiting the erection of new manufactories, sedition will 
follow, and the breach be beyond healing. All these contin- 
gencies will depend in a great degree on the course pursued 
by the next Parliament. I have already mentioned in my 
last, that the provinces, after having separately deliberated 
on the attitude to be assume 1 in regard to the stamp act, 
have disregarded the order forbidding them to communicate 
their proceedings to each other, and have held a general con- 
vention of deputies from the different States. The prohibition 
against such gatherings has been reiterated. 

"In a few days I hope to have the honor of writing to 
you from New York." 

Kalb quitted Philadelphia for Kew York on the 25th of 
January, 1768. At that time, especially in the winter season, 
the journey occupied as many days as it now does hours. 
After encountering great difficulties in crossing the Delaware 



60 LIFEOFKALB. 

and Raritan, and travelling three days in getting to Princeton, 
Kalb reached the shore opposite Staten Island on the 28th, 
whence he was obliged to cross the Kill. It was between 
seven and eight o'clock in the evening, the weather extreme- 
ly cold, and the ground covered with snow. The passage, 
however, was considered entirely safe by the landlord of the 
Blazing Star, the inn at the landing, and by the ferrymen, 
as there was but little ice in the river, and a fair wind blow- 
ing. The boat accordingly started from the shore with its 
nine passengers, including Kalb, and four horses." But no 
sooner had it reached the middle of the current than the 
wind veered round, and the frail craft drifted helplessly 
before it upon a little island, distant about half a mile from 
the ferry and from the mouth of Fishkill Creek, where it sank 
with the horses and baggage, while the passengers saved 
themselves partly by swimming and partly by wading through 
the mud and ice. The whole island was without house, tree, 
or shelter of any kind against the piercing cold. Standing 
up to their waists in the marsh, the unfortunates shouted in 
vain for help ; their cries were lunheard, as the wind came off 
shore, and directly in their teeth. Nothing was left for them 
to do but to huddle together as closely as possible, and save 
themselves from freezing to death by exercise and watchful- 
ness. Exhausted by this protracted struggle with the 
elements, one or two gave themselves up to sleep, for which 
of course they paid the forfeit of their lives. As eleven o'clock 
expired a boy belonging to the ferry, followed, at three o'clock 
in the morning, by a jjassenger, Mr. George, who sank into 
the sleep of death in spite of all the efforts of his companions 
to kepp him awake. The rest survived the night of horrors, 
and were descried from shore at about nine o'clock in the 



LIFE OF KALB. 61 

morning. Benumbed and unconscious, scarcely able to use 
their limbs, they were loaded upon a sledge, and conveyed 
to the house of a Mr. Merserau. Kalb at once proceeded to 
bathe his feet and legs for a quarter of an hour in icy-cold 
water, then took some refreshments, went to bed, and slept 
till evening. He was the only one of the party who escaped 
without injury. The surgeon who had been sent for, when 
told of this treatment, never looked at him, but declared 
that the man who had trifled with himself in that mamier, 
must be lying dead in his bed. The others, who, on enter- 
ing the house, had crowded around a large fire, irritated the 
chilblains and lost their toes, one of them even a leg, an- 
other both his ears, and a third his fingers. Kalb, who 
figures in the account of the disaster given by the *' New 
York Gazette " of February 8, 1168, as a German colonel, lost 
all his baggage, containing several hundred louis d'ors, the 
badge of his order, and the key to his cypher. He was able 
to proceed to New York on the 31st of January, but his re- 
ports to the Duke of Choiseul were interrupted until the lat- 
ter part of February. 

"The colonies," he writes on the 25th of February, 
" seem to intrench themselves more and more in their sys- 
tem of opposition and of economy. It is said that the mer- 
chants of London are already beginning to perceive the 
effects of this policy; that in consequence of it the wages of 
labor are falling off; that a number of the trades, by combin- 
ing among themselves, have destroyed the business of those 
who worked for less than the established prices. But on all 
these points you, Mcnseigneur, must necessarily be better 
informed than I am. 

" The Assembly at Boston have just resolved to reniou- 



62 L I F E O F K A L B . 

strate with the court against»the tea tax, as will appear by 
the accompanying English documents, which I enclose in the 
original, in order to excite less suspicion in case the letter 
should be intercepted. The dissatisfaction with the impost 
grows out of their aversion to being taxed by the Parliament, 
instead of by the representatives of their own provinces. It 
would seem to me that the Court of St. James mistakes its 
own interest. If tlie king would ask the colonies for sums 
much larger than the proceeds of the imposts in dispute, 
they would be granted without any objection, provided the 
colonists were left at liberty to tax themselves, and, as free 
subjects, to give their money with their own consent. Dur- 
ing the late war they have paid enormous sums, larger ones 
than the king demanded, because he approached their as- 
semblies with the same formalities as he observed in calling 
upon Parliament for subsidies. It is a matter of ssurprise 
that the court has discarded this advantageous method, and 
that the people of Great Britain are ready to subvert the 
fundamental polity of the kingdom by taxing their fellow- 
ciiizens without their consent, when they submit to the same 
proceeding only at the hands of their representatives in the 
House of Commons. 

" The colonies have the same right ; they can only be 
taxed by their own assemblies. The king would, therefore, 
have to make an application for that purpose to every single 
colony. But the colonies themselves would not favot this 
last alternative, partly on account of the expense involved, 
and partly on account of the certainty of finding themselves 
in a minority on all occasions, which would unavoidably 
constrain them to participate in every war waged in Europe 
by England or by the elector of Hanover. They would 



LIFEOFKALB. 63 

prefer a parliament or a continental assembly, a power 
which, however, would soon become dangerous to the crown. 
All classes of people here are imbued with such a spirit of 
independence and freedom from control, that if ail the prov- 
inces can be united under a common representation, an inde- 
pendent State will soon be formed. At all events it will 
certainly come forth in time. Whatever may be done in 
London, this country is growing too powerful to be much 
longer governed at so great a distance. The population is 
now estimated at three millions, and is expected to double 
itself in less than thirty years. It is not to be denied that 
children swarm everywhere like ants. The people are strong 
and robust, and even the English officers admit that the 
militia are equal to the line in every particular. 

"I have not yet obtained accurate information as to the 
number of the militia, but shall soon be able to submit a re- 
liable report. The English troops under General Gage, oc- 
cupying tlie country from New England to the Gulf of Mex- 
ico, muster sixteen regiments, each of ten companies, num- 
bering seventy men in time of peace and a hundred in time 
of war, besides a company oi* artillery and a number of en- 
gineers. I believe I have already mentioned that these 
troops are changed every three years, and are never recruited 
from the inhabitants of the country. 

" From conversations with several prominent individuals 
here, I have learned that the English Government greatly 
regrets having made peace with Spain without demanding the 
cession of the island of Porto Rico, the position of which is 
in every respect so favorable to English interests. Under the 
pretext of protecting their trade, the English Government 
has manv men of war at sea and a large number of troops on 



64 LIFEOFKALB. 

the continent, not to mention those already stationed on the 
islands. It is evident that these forces are so distributed for 
the special purpose of being prepared to pounce upon the 
French and Spanish settlements on these islands at the first 
speck of war. That the EngHsh have treated as good prizes 
several ships captured near the island of San Juan in the 
course of last year, you have doubtless been informed. 

"Enclosed are the compacts entered into between the 
Government and the Assembly of Pennsylvania, which will 
explain my recent statement relating to the war with the 
savages. On my return to France I shall report the exact 
list of the English navy and merchant marine, as well as a 
summary of the entire forces of England by land and sea. I 
am on the point of leaving for Boston and Halifax ; my ship 
is weighing her anchor." 

" Here in Boston," Kalb proceeds in his report to Choiseul 
on the 2d of March, 1768, "I meet with the same opinions as 
in the provinces already visited, only expressed with greater vio- 
lence and acrimony. The four provinces composing New Eng- 
land — Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New 
Hampshire — appear to be more firmly united among them- 
selves, in consequence of the community of interests, than the 
remaining colonies. Massachusetts in particular, the most 
wealthy and populous, gives the impulse and the signal of 
independence to the rest. In spite of this restive spirit,, how- 
ever, they all, from the leaders down to the humblest citizen, 
seem to be imbued with a heartfelt love of ihe mother coun- 
try. The inhabitants of this province are almost exclusively 
Englishmen or of English stock, and the liberties so long 
enjoyed by them, have only swelled the pride and presump- 
tion peculiar to that people. 



LIFEOFKALB. 65 

"All these circumstances go to show but too clearly that 
there will be no means of inducing them to accept of assist- 
ance from abroad. In fact, they are so well convinced of the 
justice of their cause, the clemency of the king, and of their 
own importance to the mother country, that they have never 
contemplated the possibility of extreme measures. The Gov- 
ernment is accused of fomenting the existing discontent for 
selfish purposes. The enclosed English slip will acquaint you 
with the internal dissensions on this subject, and reveal the 
causes of complaint which are urged against the Government. 
I adhere to the opinion that the incendiaries will not alone 
succumb, but that the colonies will yet have the satisfaction 
of seeing the mother country admit herself to have been in 
the wrong, and do her best to repair it. 

" I have engaged correspondents here, who will keep me 
promptly advised of everything that may occur hereafter. 
This Ltter goes by the New York packet for Holland. I 
myself shall embark two days hence for Halifax, when I shall 
repair, according to circumstances, to Isle Royale and even to 
Canada. At this moment I am engaged in collecting ma- 
terials relative to the number of the militia, to be arranged in 
the order of their regiments and provinces ; I append the par- 
ticulars relating to the form of government of each colony. 

" I am more and more astonished at the immense number 
of merchantmen to be seen in all the ports, rivers, and bays, 
from the Potomac and Chesapeake to Boston harbor. x\nd 
in addition to these, numberless ships are in course of con- 
struction. What must have been the trade of the colonies 
before the disturbances began ! Nor am I less struck with the 
flourishing appearance of the interior. On my return to France 
I shall report the most minute particulars in this connection. 



66 LIFEOFKALB. 

" By a second letter just reoeived from my wife, I see again 
that ray last lines from Holland and England were opened on 
their passage. This^ leads rae to fear that my despatches 
from this country have either met with the same fate, or per- 
haps have not arrived at all. I therefore incur the risk of 
remaining entirely without advices from you ; an additional 
reason for my speedy return, which, of course, does not pre- 
clude my coming out again, if that should appear to you to 
be required by the interests of the king's service. This step 
will enable me to change ray correspondents and agents in 
England and Holland, and to secure better protection for my 
own correspondence by addresses to be procured from my 
friends in the chief towns of this country. In this manner I 
shall be in a condition to protect myself, and guard my secret. 
The perils and hardships of the journey do not deter me, but 
I am very anxious to accomplish the ends of my mission. 
The ship will sail in two hours for Halifax. I close." 

After a very quick voyage Kalb reached Halifax on the 
7th of March, and there resumed his correspondence with 
Choiseul. Meeting everywhere with the same style of con- 
versation and the same views on the existing state of the 
country, as he says in his letter of the 9th of March, he reverts 
to the declaration that the colonies in all probability would 
never invoke foreign aid in their efforts to make themselves 
independent of the King and the Parliament, because time, 
the increase of population, and the steady increase of material 
prosperity, would of themselves accomplish the desired change. 
The harbor of Halifax he describes as one of the most spa- 
cious and secure of the continent, and as the general rendez- 
vous for the Royal Navy in the Atlantic Ocean. For this 
reason the fortifications at Cape Breton had been destroyed, 
lest they should become injurious to Halifax. 



LIFE OF KALE. 67 

Kalb intended to travel hence to Maine, and thence, if the 
cold weather continued, to pi'oceed by sleigh to Lake Cham- 
plain, returning to New York by the valley of the Hudson. A 
sudden thaw prevented him from executing the plan. His 
next report, therefore, was written at Philadelphia so late as 
the 19th of April, and contains some valuable information 
relative to the French-Canadians.'^ " There are at this day," 
he says, " but few persons in those immense provinces in sym- 
pathy with France. Those most devoted to our Government 
have left the country since the close of the war, and those 
who remain are satisfied with their present Government, or 
expect no improvement of their condition from a change of 
rulers. Their lands have risen in value, they pay but trifling 
taxes, enjoy unqualified freedom of conscience, as well as all 
the privileges of the English people, and take part in the 
management of public affairs. Besides, they have become 
closely allied with the inhabitants of the neighboring prov- 
inces by intermarriages and other ties. I regard it as my 
duty to speak candidly on all these matters, because I will 
not deceive you, and do not wish you to be deceived by 
others. In case of a war with our neighbors beyond the 
Channel it would be difficult, therefore, to make a diversion 
to this part of their possessions. I always recur to my 
belief that the quarrels of the English with their colonies 
will terminate to the satisfaction of the latter. A war with 
us would only hasten their reconciliation, and, on the footing 
of restored privileges, the English court could even dirL-ctall 
the troops, resources, and ships of this part of the world 
against our islands and the Spanish Main. A foreign war is 
less hurtful to England than internal discord, which, however, 
would at once yield to the necessity of defence against a 
common foe." 



68 LIFEOFKALB. 

As Kalb received the most«of liis private letters with the 
seal broken, and never had an answer from Choisenl to any 
of his reports, and as, for this reason, he feared that his 
correspondence with the latter had been either tampered 
wdth or entirely suppressed, he resolved to put an end to this 
painful uncertainty by instantly returning to France. He 
accordingly advised the duke of his intention on the 24th of 
April, 1768, being then at New York, and offered, if neces- 
sary, to return at once to America. " Even admitting the 
possibility of a positive rupture," he writes, '' the opening of 
actual hostilities between the court and the colonies cannot 
but be far distant, as it presupposes the participation of the 
people, the shipment of large masses of troops, and extensive 
levies of soldiers and sailors. On the other hand, the colonies, 
if hard pressed, would make a pretence of submission, to 
gain time for creating a navy, concentrating and disciplining 
their forces, and making other needful preparations." 

About the end of April Kalb left New York in the 
packet Minerva, arrived on the height of Dover the 1st of 
June, went first to London to adjust his accounts, and reached 
Paris on the 12th of June. Learning, on his first visit at 
Versailles, that of his numerous reports five only had been 
received, he requested a private audience of Choiseul on the 
23d of June. The latternamed an early day, but postponed 
the interview more than once on account of other business, 
so that on the 18th of July Kalb sent the duke a written 
statement of the English forces stationed in America on the 
1st of June, 1768. In acknowledging the receipt of this paper 
on the 22d of July, Choiseul expressed the opinion that the 
figures were too high, as it was impossible for England to 
be so strong, but encouraged him to make further reports 



LIFE OF K ALB. 69 

from time to time, and particularly to give liim access to 
letters and newspapers received from America. Up to the 
month of October lie continued to manifest an increasins: 
interest in American affairs, and to receive every information 
on the subject with the greatest attention. And, up to the 
close of the year, hardly a week elapsed without Kalb's send- 
ing the minister translations from American journals, or 
copies of his correspondence. On the 6th of August he 
submitted an elaborate memorial, containing a historical 
retrospect of the discontents of the colonies, and the conclu- 
sions his observations had led him to form. On the footing 
of the latter Kalb regards it as indubitable that America 
will at some day emancipate herself from England, either 
when the number of its inhabitants shall come to equal those 
of Great Britain, a goal which the country is approaching 
with giant strides, as the population is swelled not by births 
alone but by immigration from every quarter of Europe, or 
when England shall drive the colonies to unite and declare 
their independence by increased pressure and unbending 
severity. He goes on to predict that the Americans will not 
only throw off all allegiance to the British crown, but in time 
will threaten and indeed annex the possessions of other 
European powers on the Northern continent. On the other 
hand he is of opinion that at the present stage of the contest 
they will rather submit than call in foreign assistance, and 
sees nothing in the present difficulties but a family quarrel, 
for which reason also he has no doubt that the ministers will 
ultimately adopt a conciliatory policy, and recommends an 
attitude of observation and expectancy. 

His views are those of a calm and sensible observer, 
who draws his conclusions from the facts before him. That 



70 LIFEOFKALB. 

they were correct in relation *o the facts which had then 
transpired, is proved not only by the simultaneous opinion 
of Durand, the French Ambassador at London, who, on the 
30th of August, based on reliable accounts, declares it inju- 
dicious to calculate upon an early revolution in the colonies, 
while his successor, Count Chatelet, in an official paper 
dated as late as the 18th of November, 1768, warns Choiseul 
against any precipitate act of hostility to England, as cal- 
culated to reconcile the colonies with the mother country, 
and to unite them both against France ;^° but it is also 
made m-anifest by the repeated declarations of Franklin, who 
at that time also believed that a foreign intervention would 
result in silencing the complaints of the colonie's, and who, 
even in the year 1770, maintained an unbroken faith in the 
adjustment of the pending difficulties. 

At the close of the year 1768 Choiseul became daily 
more indifferent to Kalb's reports. His attention was en- 
grossed, on the one hand, by the war for the final occupa- 
tion of Corsica, which just then was assuming proportions 
calculated to concentrate all the efforts of the nation, and 
on the other hand by a plan he was then eagerly discussing 
with Count Chatelet for damaging England and fostering 
the discontent of her colonies by uniting with Spain in the 
renunciation of the old French and Spanish colonial policy, 
and freely admitting the products of North America into 
the colonies of both Bourbon powers. The execution was 
frustrated by the scruples of the Spanish minister Grimaldi, 
who feared to enhance still further the importance and the 
prosperity of a neighbor already formidable, and likely by 
making it independent of the mother country and assum- 
ing a republican form of government, to prove positively 



LIFE OF KALB. 71 

dangerous to the interests of Spain. Choiseul himself was 
so busy with diplomatic'' transactions, cabinet consultations, 
reports of various boards of trade, and other matters per- 
taining to the immediate realization of his revolutionary- 
projects, that no time was left him for matters comparatively 
unimportant, such as Kalb's reports. He acted, therefore, 
like all great men having no further use for those who have 
been instrumental in furthering their designs : he broke with 
Kalb on a most frivolous pretext. Early in 1769, when the 
latter pressed for the private audience so long promised, 
the duke sent him word that his receptions held at the war 
department every Sunday were open to all who had any- 
thing to say to him. Kalb went to request an hour's in- 
terview. Choiseul would not hear him out, but interrupted 
him by saying, " You returned too soon from America, and 
your labors are therefore of no use to me. You need not 
send me any more reports about that country." This un- 
merited reproach^* hurt Kalb the more, as Choiseul had re- 
peatedly testified his approbation of Kalb's course, and had, 
but a iew months previously, handed him six thousand 
francs in reward of his service?. 

Of course Kalb broke off his correspondence, and with- 
drew from the minister's notice, not, however, without hav- 
ing made him a proi:er representation of the injustice of his 
conduct. On the 4th of June, 1770, the duke promised to 
include him in the number of the brigadiers to be newly ap- 
pointed, but the Tulfilment of the promise was prevented by 
the downfall of the hitherto all-powerful minister at Christ- 
mas, 1770. But whatever may have been the termination- 
of the intercourse between the gifted statesman and his con- 
scientious a^ent, it is not to be denied that Kalb's reports 



72 LIFE OF K A LB. 

exercised an immediate influence upon the politics of the 
period. By sustaining Choiseul in the firm conviction that 
the difficulties with their American possessions would not 
allow the Eno^lish Government to obstruct his designs 
against Corsica, they quickened his movements for the occu- 
pation of that island. The event justified this calculation, 
for the English acquiesced in the advances of the French, and 
contented themselves with an empty protest even when the 
occupation of the island was complete. England's power 
was paralyzed in America. 

This whole period was one of preparation for the coming 
struggle, of secret estrangement and external cordiality 
between the two courts. They watched each other narrow- 
ly, surveyed the ground, caught every breeze likely to injure 
the opponent, ran over with professions of friendship, and 
secretly furthered the plans of each other's enemies. In 
England money and supplies were collected for the brave 
Corsicans then in arms against the French, while Choiseul, 
in a sudden burst of anger, threatened to raise collections 
in France for the seditious inhabitants of New York and 
Boston." This single fact throws a striking light I bn the 
real condition of aifairs. England honored the noble but 
unfortunate Paoli, who had taken refuge on her soil, as a na- 
tional hero ; France had to nurse her wrath eight years be- 
fore she could revenge herself by the brilliant reception of 
Franklin at Paris. 

England ought to have known, in August, 1768, what 
weight to attach to Choiseul's expressions of indignation at 
being suspected of fomenting and cherishing the discontent 
of the American colonies at a time of peace. In the most 
glaring contrast to these hypocritical professions, the French 



LIFEOFKALB. 73 

minister welcomed witli perfect rapture every symptom of 
American insubordination, gave audience to his agents, and 
sent them to Asia or America to secretly intrigue against 
England, scrupulously preserving, in the archives of the 
ministry of foreign aftairs, every newspaper slip from the 
provincial journals of Boston or Savannah, every revolution- 
ary placard, nay, every sermon of a discontented New Eng- 
land minister, if only unfavorable to English interests. The 
number of articles translated by Kalb from the most unim- 
portant local journals alone amounts to more than a hundred; 
and at the present day, in reading the letters from little 
towns like Newport, Salem, or Newbern, which are proba- 
bly extant nowhere except in Paris, one is at a loss whether 
more to admire the indefatigable assiduity of the agent, or 
the untiring researches of the duke. His downfall frustrated 
the execution of his designs against the English ; but after 
a short interval of five years, which proved highly favorable 
to the development of the American Revolution, they were 
resumed by the Count de Vergennes with equal energy, and 
carried to a successful consummation. . 

4 



CHAPTEK V. 

Kalb Buys Milon la Chapelle. — Retirement. — Is called Upon to Go to 
Poland. — The Contest there. — Kalb makes Stipplations. — They are 
Rejected. — Kalb Remains at Home. — His Uneasy Ambition. — Hb 
Enters into Temporary Active Service at Metz. — Broglie calls 
UPON St. Germain to Reappoint Kalb. — St. Germain Proposes to send 
HIM TO America. — Kalb Accedes to the Proposal. — Delays. — Kalb 
MADE A Brigadier-General for the Colonies. — Promises for the 
Future. — Political Situation. — Vergennes Minister of Foreign 
Affairs. — His Attitude in Regard to England and America. — St. 
Germain and Sartines Side with Him. — Du Coodray and Beaumar- 
chais Work for the Americans. — Kalb's Interview with Deane. — 
Their Contracts. — Lafayette. — Kalb's Influence upon Him. — Kalb 
Intends to Sail from Havre in December, 1116. — Difficulties. — Im- 
prudence OF Beaumarchais and the Officers. — Lord Stormond's Sus- 
picions. — He Ppotests Against the Departure of the Expedition. — 
The French Government Issues a Prohibition Against it. — Du Cou- 
DRAY Goes Nevertheless. — Kalb Remains for the Present. — His 
Correspondence with Dubois. — Relations Between France and 
America. — Lafayette. — Franklin's Arrival in Paris. — Letter of 
THE Count de Broglie. — He Wants to be Dictator in America. — Mis- 
taken Suppositions of this Letter. — Position Occupied by the 
French Nobility in Reference to the American Revolution. — Kalb 
Never Delivers the Letter. — He Returns to Paris in the First In- 
stance. — Postponed is not Abolished. 

A FEW months after his return fi'om America Kalb pur- 
chased the chateau of Milon la Chapelle, an ancient 
manor situate about three miles south of Versailles. The 
former possessor, M. de Besset, and his wife, being childless, 
and advanced in years, disposed of it on very favorable con- 
ditions. They reserved a small annuity, and the possession 



LIFEOFKALB. 75 

for life of the old chateau, while they gave immediate posses- 
sion of all the lands and feudal rights, at a price of only seventy- 
two thousand francs. Neither Kalb nor his wife ever moved 
into the chateau, as both they and their eldest son died before 
the Bessets, the survivor of whom lived till the year 1798. 
The second son of our hero, however, Elie de Kalb, entered 
upon the property after he had been permitted by Napoleon 
to return to France, and it is still occupied by his daughter, 
the Viscountess d'Alzac." 

The duties and responsibilities growing out of this opera- 
tion, and the arrangement of his affairs in general, now occu- 
pied Kalb so constantly, that he was compelled, for the pres- 
ent at least, to renounce all ambitious schemes. In this 
manner two years passed in rural retirement, which must have 
been doubly grateful in view of the hopeless condition of 
public affairs, and the decay of morals and manners in the 
ruling circles of society. After the fall of Choiseul the con- 
temptible Dubarry had played the King and the Government 
into the hands of a new set of men. The commanding influ- 
ence which had been exercised on the counsels of Europe by 
France under the auspices of the now banished duke, rapidly 
fell back to zero. 

Among the minions of the omnipotent mistress was the 
Count of St. Florentine, created Due de Vrilliere, secretary 
of the king and temporary minister of foreign affairs, who 
had known Kalb personally ever since the last war, and who, 
in 1771, suggested to him to go to Poland, there to follow 
the example of many other French officers, in contending for 
the confederates against the Russians. 

Since the accession of Stanislaus Poniatowski in 1764, 
Poland had become a football in the hands of the foreign 



76 LIFEOFKALB. 

powers, especially of Russia, aU at work to accomplish its 
disintegration. The struggles leading to this result were 
protracted by the opposition offered by the confederated 
patriot nobility, for full eight years. Choiseul of course sided 
with the latter, and although unable at that time to take their 
part openly, he not only furnished them secretly with money, 
arms, and officers, but also stirred up the Turks against the 
Russians, to interfere with the operations of tfie latter against 
the Poles. His secret agent, Dumouriez, at Warsaw, and his 
envoy, Vergennes, at Constantinoj)le, both diplomatists of the 
first water, worked in concert to this end. These matters 
also were greatly changed by Choiseul's fall. The Due 
d'Aiguillon, now the foreign minister of Louis XV., by his 
indifference to the honor and fortunes of the country, by his 
negligence and thoughtlessness, forfeited all the results of the 
labors of his predecessor. The decadence of the French 
power, in connection with England's American perplexities, 
made the partition of Poland an easy matter for the Eastern 
powers. The sympathies of the court of Versailles for the 
unfortunate country were now confined to the sending of a 
few more officers, without opposing any measure, or even a 
protest, against the encroachments of the spoilers. It was 
about a year and a half before the partition took place that 
Vrilli^re, and Monteynard, the minister of war, the latter 
probably at the instigation of the former, called upon Kalb to 
take part in the contest. Dumouriez was still in Poland as 
the secret agent of France, but was soon displaced by the 
incompetent Viomenil. Kalb was not unknown to the Mar- 
quis de Monteynard, having been recommended to him for 
promotion to the rank of Brigadier in the beginning of the 
year 1771, upon his assuming the portfolio as successor to the 



LIFEOFKALB. 77 

Marquis de Castries. While Vrilliere was unreserved in his 
language, the war minister veiled his meaning in mysterious 
allusions which could not commit him. 

" The king," he wrote to Kalb from Versailles the 4th of 
March, 1771, "considers you qualified, by your talents, for 
a special undertaking of great importance to his service. It 
is the wish of his Majesty that you should at once repair to 
this place, to receive the directions relating to this mission, if 
you are prepared to embrace this opportunity of giving fur- 
ther proofs of the zeal heretofore manifested." 

"I have," answered Kalb on the 12th of March, 1771," 
" maturely considered the proposal of the Due de Vrilliere, 
to serve the Polish confederation, as well as the terms of- 
fered, by which my promotion is to be postponed until after 
my return, and my compensation to be confined to what I 
may succeed in obtaining from the confederation. I pray 
you, therefore, Monseigneur, if you desire to make use of me, 
and to give me an opportunity of extending my travels and 
improving my knowledge of men and things, to grant me 
two favors : 1. The rank of a brigadier, to which my past 
services and my rank entitle me, so much the more as various 
junior officers, M. de Rossiere and others, have received it. 
This honor would redouble my zeal and activity in the 
king's service ; in my intercourse with the confederation it 
would be absolutely indispensable, as it would convince 
them that I enjoy the confidence of my sovereign, and am 
entitled to be respected accordingly, and that neither neces- 
sity nor love of adventure drives me into the ranks of the 
patriots. 2. That you would be pleased, either in person or 
by the Due de Vrilliere, to fix my salary, in order that I may 
depend solely upon the king and not upon the confederation, 



18 LIFEOFKALB. 

who may perhaps treat me well, and perhaps ill, in which 
latter case I need not, if thus provided for, resort to the 
painful expedient of quitting their service. 

" A point of no less importance is that I am not to be 
acknowledged by the king in case of an unforeseen reverse. 
I pass this over in silence, because His Majesty may have 
reasons for this policy, to which I gladly defer; but it 
should be an additional inducement to grant me the two re- 
quests above mentioned, as at least some little equivalent for 
the risk incurred of the probable consequences of a refusal to 
acknowledge me. 

"Last year M. de Valcroissant was sent to the Turkish 
army as a brigadier, a rank certainly less his due than it 
would be mine, if services and seniority are considered. 
Besides, he received pay to the amount of thirty thousand 
livres per annum. One-fifth or one-sixth of that sum would 
content me when once appointed brigadier, because I do not 
serve to enrich myself, but to advance and to deserve the 
favor of my king and his ministers." 

Kalb evidently distrusted the sincerity and the good 
will of the Due de Vrilliere and the Marquis de Monteynard. 
The latter never entertained his proposals, but simply re- 
jected them. A negotiation on the same subject opened 
early in August, 1771, with the Due dAiguillon as minis- 
ter of foreign aifairs, was equally futile. The Government 
had determined to risk nothing for the Poles, no matter how 
much the policy of the two countries was identified by a 
common interest and by tradition. They were evidently 
preparing to retreat from the position occupied by ChoiseuL 
Thus the idea was entirely abandoned. 

Kalb remained at home for the present, and devoted the 



LIFEOFKALB. 79 

ensuing years exclusively to his family and his private affairs. 
His condition in life was in every way satisfactory and envi- 
able. He lived in peace and comfort, sometimes in Paris 
and sometimes at his country-house of Brouossy near Milon; 
his children throve; and as he was even then in possession 
of a fortune of more than four hundred thousand francs, so 
as to be independent in every respect, he had, as a private 
man, little or nothing to wish for. Nevertheless, the desire 
for activity and distinction constantly interfered with the 
enjoyment of his good fortune ; his restless spirit could not 
adapt itself to the contracted sphere of his rural retirement, 
and at every glimpse of promotion he beset his friends w^ith 
solicitations for their intercession, and wrote plans, opinions, 
and proposals about himself as well as about war and peace. 
During the reign of Louis XY., however, all his efforts 
to be restored to active service were in vain. It was not 
until the accession of Louis XVL that a change of events 
occurred favorable to his aspirations. Among the dignita- 
ries out of favor with the old court, now recalled to Ver- 
sailles and invested with influential stations, were the broth- 
ers Broglie, Kalb's old friends and patrons, w^ho had warmly 
advocated his claims for preferment on all occasions. When 
the Comte de Broglie went to Metz in 1775 as military 
commander-in-chief, Kalb worked under him for four months, 
under a regulation then adopted by the minister of war, du 
Muy, requiring retired staff oflicers to do duty in garrison 
from time to time. The manner in which his duties were 
performed on this occasion was so satisfactory to the count, 
that the latter personally vouched for his efficiency to the 
Count of St. Germain, on the appointment of the latter to 
the ministry of war in 0(!tober, 1775, and urgently solicited 



80 LIFEOFKALB. 

his immediate reappointment. This junior Broglie, the 
Count Charles Francois (1719 to 1781), was no less faithful 
as a friend and zealous as a supporter, than bitter and im- 
placable as an enemy, never forgiving and constantly thwart- 
ing those who refused to subject themselves implicitly to his 
dictation, while indulging, aiding, and encouraging all those 
who devoted themselves unreservedly to his interests. In 
public life he gained less distinction as a general and poli- 
tician, than as a ready intriguer. He was of the party which 
had broken down the Due de Chcfiseul, behind whose back 
he had acted for years as head of the secret cabinet of Louis 
XY., and never deceived himself in the selection of the in- 
struments of his ambition, but frequently erred, as we shall 
have occasion to see hereafter, in his political plans and pro- 
jects, which were almost never regulated by a correct 
knowledge of men and things.^* 

St. Germain answered the Comte de Broglie's note on 
the 10th of December, 1775, regretting that no opening then 
offered for Kalb in the army, but wrote at the foot of the 
letter with his own hand, " When you shall have returned 
here, M. le Corate, we shall see what disposition may be 
made of M. de Kalb." This hint referred to America, which 
was just then more than ever attracting the attention of the 
French Government. Broglie came to Paris and Versailles 
early in the ensuing year, and eagerly seconded St. Germain's 
proposal to send our hero to the assistance of the rebellious 
colonies. Kalb himself was soon after admitted to an audi- 
ence of the minister of war. The particulars of their inter- 
view have not been recordel ; but the result was that Kalb's 
position in the French array remained unaltered, a two years' 
furlough only being grantel him. 



LIFEOFKALB. 81 

At the same time St. Germain promised to procure for 
him the rewards and honors corresponding to the risk in- 
curred and the advantages to be attained, and, at the first op- 
portunity, to bestow upon him the dignity of a " marechal de 
camp"; declining, however, to accede to his request to ap- 
point him a brigadier immediately, on account of the attention 
which would have been attracted by such a departure from 
ordinary rules, in the absence of a vacancy of that grade in 
the army. Nevertheless, on the 6th of November, 1776, M. 
de Sartines handed Kalb a commission as brigadier-general 
for the islands. In France he now had little or nothinoj to 
hope for, while a wide field was opened to him on the other 
side of the ocean. Honor and renown invited him to try his 
fortunes there. He made up his mind to go ; resolving, 
however, before preparing for his departure, to await the ex- 
pected arrival in Paris of the American agent, Silas Deane, 
an event which was delayed until the beginning of July, 
1776. 

Months again elapsed before Kalb entered into com- 
munication with him. The cause of this delay does not 
appear. Diplomatic and personal scruples appear to have 
obstructed his path for some time, and the general politics 
of the day were not without their influence on Kalb's move- 
ments. It is known that the year 1776 was occupied with 
the covert diplomacy of the French ministry for and with 
the American insurgents, in secretly supporting and openly 
repudiating them, in steps looking to a more open policy, 
and in sudden relapses and tergiversations. 

The Government of Louis XVI. had from the first given 
its special attention to the disturbances in the American 
colonies, the Comte de Yergennes, minister of foreign affairs, 
4* 



82 LIFEOFKALB. 

in particular, having omitted no opportunity, since the open- 
ing of hostilities by the engagement at Lexington and the 
taking of Ticonderoga, of making England's embarrassments 
of advantage to France and Spain. In the cabinet the 
ministers of war and marine, St. German and Sartines, were 
entirely on his side, while Maurepas, Malherbes, and Turgot 
were more inclined for peace, the latter especially opposing 
warlike measures on account of the shattered state of the 
finances. The young king vacillated between both parties, 
and was open to every impression, without being capable 
of forming a judgment of his own upon any topic. The only 
question was who was the longest and the last to influence 
him. Vergennes was a shrewd and clear-lieaded statesman, 
without the impetuosity of genius, but unerring in his aims, 
which he pursued often with insignificant means, but gen- 
erally with success. Belonging to the lower order of nobility, 
he had elevated himself by his own exertions, and, serving 
under Choiseul, had gone through a superior diplomatic 
training as envoy at Stockholm and Constantinople. Hav- 
ing, by his representatives and agents, among whom the 
notorious Bonvouloir was one of the most adroit and reliable, 
obtained an accurate knowledge of the objects and intentions 
of the colonies, he never urged the irresolute king, but edified 
him and all the world with homilies on the sanctity of exist- 
ing contracts and the necessity of peace, while in secret, 
without committing the Government, he did his utmost to 
further the development of affairs across the Atlantic. It 
was not until March, 1776, when just in receipt of an elabo- 
rate report from Bonvouloir, that, in a solemn council of 
ministers he reminded the passive king of the absolute neces- 
sity of securing Fran -^ against any peril growing out of the 



LIFEOFKALB. 83 

Anglo-American disturbances, suggesting that, after subdu- 
ing the American rebellion, England would bring her whole 
force to bear upon her natural foes and rivals, Spain and 
France, as her statesmen for years had never inquired what 
harm they were actually suffering at the hands of the latter 
power, but always what harm they might possibly suffer 
hereafter. England should therefore be encouraged to adopt 
the most stringent measures against her colonies, and to be 
nursed in the belief that the Bourbon powers were not only 
peaceful in their inclinations, but fearful of the costs of a 
war ; on the other hand, however, the colonies must not be 
suffered to despair, but must be further estranged from the 
mother country, and confirmed in their aspirations after 
independence by undefined promises and even some secret 
assistance, such as gratuitous shipments of munitions of war.'" 
This discourse came, in the sequel, particularly after the 
great and good Turgot had been compelled to give way 
before the bitter animosity of the higher nobility, to consti- 
tute the programme which, often abandoned and resumed, 
was finally carried out, until at length an open rupture 
became inevitable. Vergennes closely followed the course 
pursued by England at the time of the French occupation 
of Corsica. He also secured the cooperation of Spain, whose 
interests had been much impaired by the common enemy in 
Morocco, Algiers, and the Philippine Islands. On the 27th 
of June, 1776, King Charles, without the knowledge of any 
of his cabinet excei)t the prime minister Grimaldi, and with- 
out communicating with his ambassador at Paris, sent a 
million of francs as his moiety contributed to the joint 
support of the Americans. While Vergennes found in 
Beaumarchais, who had approved himself as a skilled diplo- 



84 LIFE OF KALB. 

matist under the preceding Government in various transac- 
tions with the notorious Chevalier d'Eon, the pamphleteer 
Morande, and others, an excellent go-between to cover his 
relations with the American agent, St. Germain employed 
a prominent artillery officer, in the person of Adjutant- 
General Colonel du Coudray, who, in 1774, had made the 
round of the garrisons of the kingdom for the purpose of 
ascertaining the stock of guns and small arms on hand, to 
select from tlie arsenals the arms and munitions of war 
intended for the Americans, and transport them to th3 
various seaports. With this object du Coudray, in Septem- 
ber, 1776, visited Metz, Maubeuge, St. Etienne, Besangon, 
Charleville, Strasburg, and Dijon, and made choice of two 
hundred four-pound field-pieces, witli a hundred thousand 
balls, besides thirty thousand stand of small arms, and 
ammunition, and four thousand tents. Sartines at the same 
time acted in concert with the Comte de Yergennes, endeav- 
oring to mask the proceedings from the scrutiny of the 
British by pretending to order the arms taken from the 
arsenals by du Coudray, to St. Domingo and other colonies, 
and attaching the officers ordered to America by the minister 
of war, with a superior rank, to an expedition also ostensibly 
designed for the colonies. 

Under the mantle of the same device Kalb was likewise 
to proceed to America, to place his knowledge and experience 
at the disposal of the rebellious colonies, in the interest of 
France. His first interview with Deane took place on the 
5th of November, the date intervening between that of his 
furlough and that of his promotion, a circumstance pointed 
out by the American agent himself in his letters to the Con- 
gressional Committee on Secret Correspondence. 



LIFEOFKALB. 85 

" The rage, as I may say, for entering into the American 
service," writes Silas Deane from Paris, November 6, 1776,^^* 
" increases, and the consequence is that I am pressed 
with offers and proposals, many of them from persons of the 
first rank and eminence, in the sea as w^ell as land service. 
Count Broglie, who commanded the army of France during 
the last war, did me the honor to call on me twice yester- 
day with an officer who served as his quartermaster-general 
in the last war, and has now a regiment in this service, but 
being a German, — the Baron de Kalb, — and having travelled 
through America a few years since, he is desirous of engaging 
in the service of the United States of North America. I can 
by no means let sli|) an opportunity of engaging a person 
of so much experience, and who is by every one recommended 
as one of tlie bravest and most skilful officers in the king- 
dom ; yet I am distressed on every such occasion for want 
of your particular instructions. This gentleman has an 
independent fortune, and a certain prospect of advance- 
ment here ; but being a zealous friend to liberty, civil and 
religious, he is actuated by the most independent and gener- 
ous principles in the offer he makes of his servicse to the 
States of America." 

Deane accordingly engaged the services of Kalb as ma- 
jor-general, his seniority to date from the 7th of November, 
1776, and reported, on the 28th of the same month, that he 
regarded them as a great acquisition to the cause of American 
liberty. The formal contract was signed by both parties on 
the 1st of December. Kalb signed for himself and fifteen 
companions, among whom were the Vicomte de Mauroy, 
major-general, Dubuysson, afterward his aide and major, 
von HoUzendorff, lieutenant-colonel, and various officers of 
every grade down to that of lieutenant. 



86 LIFEOFKALB. 

The English ambassador was not ill served by his spies, 
who informed him, as early as the 4th of December, that 
Kalb was on the point of going to America, at the wish and 
instigation of the French Government. 

" I am very credibly informed," writes Lord Stormond on 
that day confidentially to Lord Viscount Weymouth, con- 
founding correct with incorrect statements, " a Mons. Colbe, 
a Swiss officer formerly in this service, who married a daugh- 
ter of the famous van Robais, was sent for to Fontainebleau, 
and stayed there some days. It was proposed to him that if 
he would go to St. Domingo and from thence to North 
America, he should have the rank of Brigadier, and nine or 
ten thousand livres a year during the tihie of his being em- 
ployed. These conditions he accepted after some hesitation, 
and set out from hence on Monday last. He is accompanied 
by a Mons. Holtzendorflf, a Prussian by birth, who was like- 
wise engaged by this court, and has had the rank of lieuten- 
ant-colonel given him, \vhh six thousand livres a year. He 
is not thought to be an officer of any distinction, but M. 
Colbe is, I am told, a man of ability. He was sent to North 
America during the ministry of M. de Choiseul, who gave 
him the ' ordre de me rite.' " 

In point of fact the negotiations had not yet reached this 
point. Kalb was still in Paris, and concluded a new agree- 
ment with Deane on the Yth of December, which bears the 
additional signature of Lafayette. This young man had 
then just completed his nineteenth year. He was filled with 
yo-ithful enthusiasm for America, and a burning desire to 
flesh his sword in a transatlantic crusade. His kinsman and 
paternal friend, the Comte de Broglie, who had knowledge 
of his plans, and who, at the same lime, was Kalb's ardent 



LIFE OF KALB. 87 

protector, referred his cousin to the latter, and recommended 
him to his care and counsel. It must have been between the 
1st and 7th of December that Kalb introduced his protege 
to Deane, for he is not named at all in the contract bearing 
the former date, while he signs the latter as one of the par- 
ties. 

Kalb had been clear from the first that the colonies could 
not reckon upon a steady and vigorous support at the hands 
of France, unless they should succeed in enlisting the sym- 
pathies of a considerable number of individuals eminent by 
birth and station. He therefore made it his special object to 
confirm young Lafayette in his noble and disinterested zeal, 
as he did not fail to perceive that he would draw after him 
many others of the sprigs of the high nobility, and thus, pos- 
sibly, make interest enough ultimately to bring about an 
alliance between the two countries. As a man of riper years 
and established reputation, whose judgment and experience 
had weight with younger men, he brought the indefinite and 
sometimes wandering ambition of the French nobles to bear 
upon a practical object, and gave a political direction to the 
enthusiasm for philosophy and the rights of man then raging 
among fashionable circles. He managed to identify with it 
the struggle against England, and the necessity of wiping 
from the French escutcheon the stains inflicted by the Seven 
Years' War ; and by this exercise of his personal influence, he 
made himself not only the leader and adviser of the young 
nobility, but also contributed no less to the final success of 
the American arms, than he was afterward instrumental in 
promoting it as a commander in the field. 

It "vas about the end of November or beginning of De- 
cember, 1776. Deane intended to send the cannon above 



88 LIFEOFKALB. 

rinmed, as well as the ammunition, arms, and tents, which the 
French Government had presented to the colonies, together 
with the oiEcers, from Havre, Nantes, L'Orient, and Dunkirk, 
to America. Kalb himself was to sail from Havre with one 
of the very first vessels. It had been sufficiently difficult to 
collect these various articles from out of the fortresses of the 
eastern and northern parts of the kingdom, and convey them 
to the western ports, without exciting the suspicions of the 
English ambassador ; but these difficulties were increased 
tenfold when they were to be shipped at these ports in the 
vessels taken by the officers enlisted by Deane. The minis- 
ters answered Lord Stormond's remonstrances by saying that 
the munitions of war and the officers were intended for the 
colonies ; but this allegation was contradicted by the cir- 
cumstance that merchantmen, and not men of war, w^ere 
employed for the purpose. Moreover, the young officers be- 
longing to the expedition committed great indiscretions — 
w^ent through the streets of Havre and ISTantes boasting of 
their intended exploits, and discussed their plans and pro- 
jects in the coffee-houses, as if with the design of provoking 
the misgivings of the English minister. Even Beaumarchais, 
who had hastened to Havre, under the assumed name of 
Durand, to superintend the embarcation, lapsing from his 
great mercantile role into the weaknesses of the literary man, 
could not deny himself the satisfaction of having his come- 
dies performed during his presence at Havre, and even at- 
tended the rehearsals.'^® 

One of Deane's ships, ostensibly bound for St. Domingo, 
the Amphitrite, was to take General du Coudray, while an- 
other, " la Seine^^^ was to carry the cortege headed by Kalb, 
who reached Havi-e o the 10th of December. The former 



LIFEOFKALB. 89 

actually set sail from Havre on the 14tli of December, but 
returned in a few days to L'Orient, dissatisfied with the ac- 
commodations of the vessel and the storage of the cargo." 
At the energetic interpellation of Lord Stormond, the French 
ministers now could not avoid issuing an unqualified inter- 
dict of the expedition. To this was added the news of the 
defeat of the Americans in the campaign of 1776 — a sufficient 
reason with Vergennes for even w^ithholding, for the pres- 
ent, the supplies already on shipboard.^" Du Coudray again 
set sail, alone, on the 14th of February, 1777 ; but Kalb and 
his companions remained, awaiting a more favorable oppor- 
tunity. 

While Kalb was still at Havre, expecting the removal 
of the obstacles to his departure, he received, from one of 
his confidants, Dubois Martin, secretary of the Comte de 
Broglie, reports of occurrences at Paris, and the prospects 
of Lafayette and his friends, and consulted with him on their 
mutual plans for the future. Dubois' letters, dated the 8th, 
14th, and 17th of December, throw a new light upon this 
still obscure stage of the relations of France with America, 
and therefore deserve to be given here at length.^^ 

" I have received," says Dubois, December the 8th, "the 
letter you sent me in favor of M. Gerard for Mr. Deane. 
Receive my thanks for your attention and punctuality at a 
moment when you are so much occupied with your impending 
departure. I liave been persuaded by M. de Mauroy and de 
la Roziore to dine with them. The Marquis de Lambert 
occupied me with his conversation for a long time, and the 
Marquis de Lafayette has conversed with me for at least three 
hours at two sittings. But you have seen him this morning 
after he had left me ; I am not, therefore, called upon to 
relate what took place between us this evening. 



90 LIFEOFKALB. 

• 

" Lafayette has probably told you that the Due d'Ayen 
(his father-in-law) had written, or intended to write, to M. de 
Maurepas. The answer of the minister was to the effect that 
he knew nothing of the entry of French officers into the ser- 
vice of the English colonies, that such a step would be an act 
of hostility, which his Majesty was far from sanctioning ; that 
the king was much gratified with the evidences of the zeal 
of the Vicomte de Noailles (Lafayette's brother-in-law), but 
that he must not think of going to America. On the strength 
of this letter, which is exactly what it should have been, when 
a matter calculated for oral communication only is committed 
to writing, the Vicomte de Noailles renounces his plan. The 
answer of M. de Maurepas will certainly get before the pub- 
lic, and no doubt come to the knowledge of Lord Stormond, 
so that, if this ambassador and his court put faith in it (a 
question which I leave to your decision), your journey to 
St. Domingo will not be molested. Our young marquis 
(Lafayette) does not despair; he still has the greatest desire 
to go, and is on the point of writing to Ruffec (the Comte de 
Broglie's country-seat) for advice and information. He is 
satisfied with sending his letter by mail, which will give him 
leisure for reflection, and the count sufficient time for consid- 
eration. I do not yet know what will be Lafayette's final 
resolution. M. de Noailles, having renounced his own de- 
signs, will probably endeavor to dissuade the marquis from 
adhering to his, in which attempt he will of course be seconded 
by his family. I shall have the honor, if there is sufficient 
time, of informing you of any turn the affair may take here- 
after, availing n^yself, for that purpose, of the address of M. 
Feray. 

'* Yesterday," continues Dubois, from Paris, the 14th of De- 



LIFE OF KALB. 91 

cember, 1776, "I received your favor of the 10th instant. I 
am waiting for news from Kuffec, and it gives me great pleas 
ure to hope there may be time to transmit them to you. 

" It must be confessed that secrecy is a virtue, and that 
you have every reason to congratulate yourself on having 
escaped the consequences of the precautions taken by your 
braggart friends to prevent your journey from becoming pub- 
licly known. 

"The Due d'Ayen had written to M. de Maurepas for the 
Vicomte de Noailles. The minister answered that he knew 
nothing about the matter, and that he could not allow the 
vicomte to go. The Marquis de Lafayette is not discouraged. 
He is waiting for the answer to a letter which he has handed 
to me (for the count), and will take the advice which will be 
given him. He is a most splendid young man, and sincerely 
devoted to you. 

"The latest news which occupies all the world here, is the 
arrival of Mr. Franklin at Nantes, who, as I may remark in 
passing, has even taken a ship on his journey hither. He will, 
as M. de Fayolles writes me, set out for Paris to-day or to- 
morrow. 

" Mr. Deane will wait till Monday before handing M. de 
Mauroy the despatches intended to have been delivered last 
Thursday. He received a letter from Mr. Franklin, by which 
this matter was protracted. Two persons have to-day in- 
formed me, that a prohibition has been published against dis- 
cussing the war in the cafes. The precaution is a timely one, 
as the war is at present the subject of every conversation. 

" I hope to send you some news from Ruffec before your 
departure, and would request you to forward the enclosed 
little note to M. de Sonne ville." 



92 LITEOFKALB. 

" I have the honor/' says Dubois in his final epistle of De- 
cember 17, "to enclose a letter just received for you from the 
Comte de Broglie, while yours of the 14th instant only came 
to hand yesterday. 

" M. du Coudray and his companions have my best wishes 
for their success, and I hope that, contrary to general expec- 
tation, he may elude the pursuit of our neighbors. 

" I should be glad if you would come here once more, to 
see Mr. Franklin. It would greatly further the negotiation 
you have undertaken, as it is possible that otherwise some 
other party may approach this member of Congress with the 
same views as those we advocate. If you cannot get away I 
w^ould like you to write to Mr. Deane, asking him whether or 
not the arrival of Mr. Franklin w^ill effect any alteration in 
the form or spirit of his despatches, or in the plan you have 
submitted to him for the choice of a commander-in-chief. 

" At all events you might warn him against giving too 
ready an ear to suggestions of parties probably ill calculated 
for so important a position, as I am quite sure you agree with 
me in opinion that there is not a man in Europe so well fitted 
for the office as ours (Broglie). I do not entertain this view 
because of any predilection for the candidate. You would 
very much oblige ine by an intimation respecting your i leas 
and intentions on this head. 

" It is given out here that the insurgents have made peace. 
I do not believe it, because M. du Coudray has been allowed 
to depart. It is true that the news was only published on 
[Sunday the 15th. Mr. Deane expects Mr. Franklin to-day. 
He has now postponed to next Thursday the delivery of his 
despatches to M. de Maurc^. The latter also, as you see, is 
not ready to start. It is said here that a courier has been 



LIFE OF K A LB. 93. 

sent to the barber of Seville (Beaumarchais), whose discretion 
surprises me. I hoj^e you will adopt something of my mode 
of proceeding, if the publicity he has given to his Havre 
expedition should be attended with no ill consequence. M. 
de Mauroy desires his kindest regards. As the count is very 
fond of him, I wish you may become very intimate in foreign 
parts." 

The obscure passages in the preceding Imes are explained 
by the following letter of the Comte de Broglie himself. 
Characteristic of the selfish point of view in which the 
French magnates regarded the American contest, and inter- 
esting from the clearness with which it displays the plans 
and hopes they founded upon it, it discloses the bloated self- 
conceit of the ruling class, the narrowness of their social 
prejudices, and their utter inability to understand the scope 
and reach of the American revolution. 

In the eyes of these well-seasoned politicians and states- 
men, the enthusiasm entertained b;^j^'e younger nobility for 
a war waged in support of popular rights, was at best a 
drapery for their own selfish purposes. For such men noth- 
ing was good, just, or honorable, except what benefited them 
personally, and damaged the English. Thus America was a 
soil upon which to display their talents to the gaze of an 
admiring world ; the people there fighting for their liberties 
came to be considered, at the utmost, as materials with 
which the great were to work out the splendor of their 
renown. A sound appreciation of the merits of the issue 
was as distant from their minds as the scene of the drama 
was remote from their corporal vision. What interest they 
did take in this phase of the question was such as woidd 
have been manifested by the condescending nod of approba- 



94 LIFEOFKALB. 

tion with wliicli a lord contemplates the provident upon 
whom he bestows his charity, not so much for the happiness 
of the poor man as to illustrate his own munificence. ^ The 
peasant republic appeared, to the leading nobles of that day, 
as clear of any connection with the past or future of the 
civilized world, as the Circassians or the Bedouins appear to 
the present generation ; and Washington was little more to 
them than the brave Schamyl or Abdelkader to the modern 
newspaper reader. The candor with which this way of 
thinking and these designs are revealed in de Broglie's 
letter, is precisely what makes it so interesting and instruc- 
tive. How little Silas Deane, incompetent as he was, can 
have been convinced of the justice of his cause and the 
success of his countrymen, how perfectly ignorant he must 
have been of the nature and bearing of the contest, is 
shown by his favoring and approving the plan of the 
French, instead of repelling it with utter scorn as incompati- 
ble with the honor of his country. Can the French, under 
these circumstances, be blamed for considering the Ameri- 
cans simply as their passive instruments ? 

"I have seen with pleasure," writes de Broglie at his 
country-seat, Buffec, the 11th of December, "from the rela- 
tions of M. Dubois Martin, as well as from your last letter 
of the 5th instant, the good progress of your afi*airs, and 
hope that all yonr wishes will continue to be realized. You 
may rest assured that, on my part, I shall not neglect your 
interests, which, as you will not fail to rememb)er, I have at 
all times advocated, the more cheerfully that I know that 
the favor of the king could not be better bestowed. 

" I do not doubt that the plan communicated to you by 
M. Dubois meets you ■ entire approbation. It is clearly in- 



LIFEOFKALB. 95 

dispensable to the permanence of the work. A military and 
political leader is wanted, a man fitted to carry the weight 
of authority in the colony, to unite its parties, to assign to 
each his place, to attract a large number of persons of all 
classes, and carry them along with him, not courtiers, but 
brave, efficient, and well-educated officers, who confide in 
their superior, and repose implicit faith in him. There need 
not be many grades of a higher order ; but there is need of 
some, because the corps and the country are separate from 
each other. Not but that there is room enough for a num- 
ber of persons, from among whom a selection may be made. 
The main point of the mission with which you have been 
intrusted will, therefore, consist in explaining the advantage, 
or, rather, the absolute necessity of the choice of a man, 
who would have to be invested with the power of bringing 
his assistants with him, and of assigning to each the position 
for which he should judge him to be fitted. The rank of 
the candidate would have to be of the first eminence, such, 
for instance, as that of the Prince of Nassau ; his functions, 
however, would have to be confined to the army, excluding 
the civil service, with, perhaps, the single exception of the 
political negotiations with foreign powers. In proposing 
such a man, you must, of course, not appear to know 
whether he entertains any wish for such a position ; but, at 
the same time, you must intimate that nothing but the most 
favorable stipulations would induce him to make the sacri- 
fices expected of him. You would have to observe that 
three years would be the longest period for which he could 
possibly bind himself, that he would claim a fixed salary, to 
continue after the expiration of that period of service, and 
that on no account would he consent to expatriate himself 



96 LIFEOFKALB. 

for ever. What should make you particularly explicit or 
this point is, that the assurance of the man's return to 
France at the end of three years will remove every appre- 
hension in regard to the powers to be conferred, and will 
remove even the semblance of an ambitious design to be- 
come the sovereign of the new republic. 
I " You will, therefore, content yourself with stipulating 
j for a military authority for the person in question, who 
j would unite the position of a general and president of the 
I council of war with the title of generalissimo, field mar- 
1 shall, etc. 

" Of course large pecuniary considerations would have to 
be claimed for the preparations for the journey, and for the 
journey itself, and a liberal salary for the return home, much in 
the same manner as has been done in the case of Prince Fer- 
dinand. You can give the assurance that such a measure 
will bring order and economy into the public expenses, that 
it will reimburse its cost a hundred-fold in a single campaign, 
and that the choice of officers who follow their leader at his 
word, and from attachment to his person, is worth more than 
the reenforcement of the array with ten or twenty thousand 
men. You well know the persons who adhere to this leader 
and the unlimited number of subaltern". ; you know that they 
are not courtiers, but excellent and well-tried soldiers ; you 
know better than others, the great difference between the 
one candidate and the other, and will lay particular stress 
upon this point. You will be equally mindful to dwell upon 
the effect necessarily produced by such an appointment on 
its mere anouncement in Europe. Even in a good European 
army everything depends upon the selection of a good com- 
mander-in-chief; how much more in a cause where everything 



LIFE OF KALB. 97 

has yet to be created and adjusted ! It is not easy to find a 
man qualified for such a task, and at the same time willing to 
undertake it. If matters do wn there — " la has "— should turn 
out well, you should induce Congress immediately to send 
little Dubois back to Mr. Deane with full powers and direc- 
tions. These powers should be limited in no respect, except 
in so far as to remove all danger of a too extensive exercise 
of the civil authority, or of ambitious schemes for dominion 
over the republic. The desire is to be useful to the republic 
in a political and military way, but with all the appropriate 
honors, dignities, and powers over subordinate functionaries; 
in short, with a well-ordered power. 

"If you send back little Dubois, advise me at the same 
time of the true condition of affairs and of the state of public 
feeling, adding your suggestions of what is best to be done. 
Also inform me of the nature of the power conferred upon 
the agents of the insurgents. Farewell ! I wish you and 
your caravan a pleasant journey. I shall execute your com- 
missions, and shall see M. de Sartiges when I get to Paris. 

" Acquaint me with the receipt of this letter, and with 
the moment of your departure, and write to me under the 
direction of the Abbe St. Evrar \ at the bureau of M. St. Ju- 
lien, treasurer general of the clergy. I leave this unsigned. 
You know who I am." 

In anticipation of our narrative, we may here remark that, 
very soon after arriving in Amei'ica, Kalb was convinced of 
the utter impracticability of de Broglie's projects, and buried 
them among his papers. When this last letter came to his 
bands, the expedition to America was scattered to the winds. 
Some of the officers quietly embarked for the United States 
at L'Orient and Nantes, others did not go at all, while Kalb 



98 LIFE OF KALB. 

and his companions returned to Paris for the present, m 
the closing days of the year 1776, not to renounce his plans, 
but to prosecute them with more mature preparation and 
better success. 



CHAPTEE VI. 

Kalb and Lafayette Revive their Project. — The Latter Resolves to 
Purchase a Ship at Bordeaux. — Reasons for the Choice of Bordeaux. 
— Dubois Martin the Go-between. — The Ship La Victoire Selected. 
— Lafayette Returns from England to Paris. — Conceals Himself in 
Kalb's House. — Both Set Out for Bordeaux on the 16th of March, 
1111. — Lafayette's Family, not the Government, Opposed to Him. — 
Attitude of the French Cabinet as Respects America. — Kalb to His 
Wife ON the Difficulties Caused by Lafayette. — The Victoire Leaves 
France Unhindered. — She Sails to Los Pasages in Spain. — Lafayette 
Yields to the Orders of the Court. — He Goes Back to Bordeaux. — 
Kalb Nettled at the Blunders. — Lafayette Returns. — The Victoire 
Sails for America on the 20th of April. — The Company. — Error of 
THE Historian Sparks in Regard to Lafayette's Position as Respects 
Kalb. — Arrival in South Carolina. — ^Visit to Major Hueger. — Ride 
to Charleston. — Thence to Philadelphia. — Cool Reception on the 
Part of Congress. — The Du Coudray Difficulty. — Jealousy of the 
Native Officers. — New Threats. — Du Coudray Retires. — Lafayette 
First Appointed. — Reasons for this Preference. — Kalb's Satisfac- 
tion AT Lafayette's Progress. — Kalb's Letter of August 1, 1111^ 
TO the President op Congress. — His Well-founded Complaints. — Em- 
barrassment OF Congress. — Kalb resolves to Return to France with 
His Company. — Subsequently Congress Resolves to Appoint Him a 
Major-General. — Kalb Hesitates, but Finally Concludes to Stay.— 
His Terms Accepted in Part. — His Seniority. — He Sets Out on the 
21st of October to Join the Army. 

/^F all Kalb's friends and companions none bad more ar- 
^-^ dently sustained tbe expedition to America than Lafay- 
ette. He too, found his cherished hopes and aspirations 
blasted by the prohibitory order of tbe Frenoh Government, 
yet he clung to his design, and staked everything upon its 



100 LIFEOF'KALB. 

execution. The first call made by Lim in company with 
Kalb, who had returned in the mean time, was to the Comte 
de Broglie at Ruffec, and his private secretary, Dubois Mar- 
tin. Both agreed that the voyage to America must be made 
in spite of all obstacles, urged that it be immediately under- 
taken, and discussed with Kalb and Lafayette the measures 
required to promote the common enterprise. The result of 
their transactions, which occupied but a few days, was, that 
Lafayette resolved to purchase and freight a ship, and to em- 
bark upon it at once for America, with Kalb and his other 
friends. 

In prepaiing for this step, the utmost secrecy was the more 
essential, as the English ambassador had his spies everywhere 
in Paris and the northern seaports, and as a word from him 
must infallibly lead to an interdict of the expedition, if not to 
the arrest of those concerned. A go-between was needed to 
effect the purchase and equipment of the vessel, without at- 
tracting public attention. For this purpose the choice of the 
party fell upon a brother of the Dubois before mentioned. 
Lieutenant Franpois Auguste Dubois Martin, designated by 
de Broglie as " Little Dubois," who was attached to a French 
infantry regiment at Port-au-Prince, whence he had come to 
the mother country in 1776, to purchase arms and uniforms 
for his regiment. After executing that commission at Bor- 
deaux, he had gone to Paris at the close of the same year, in 
order to bid farewell to his brother before returning to St. 
Domingo; he arrived just as the first American expedition 
was being formed. At the recommendation of his brother he 
bad been admitted to the train with che rank of Major, and 
was on the point of embarking with Kalb at Havre, when the 
ministerial prohibition force<?Vhi™ to return to Paiis. He re- 



LIFE OF KALB. 101 

sumed his intention to return to St. Domingo ; but on the eve 
of his intended departure he was informed by his brother that 
the resolution to purchase a vessel had been formed that same 
evening, and was requested to go to Bordeaux and make the 
necessary arrangements. Bordeaux, on account of its remote 
position, did not attract the attention of the Government or 
of Lord Stormond, and therefore appeared the most suitable 
harbor. As Dubois had the necessary acquaintances there, 
and had already been engaged there in a similar business on 
account of his regiment, he was perhaps the best qualified of 
all men to accomplish so difficult an undertaking without ex- 
citing any suspicion. He therefore immediately set out for 
Bordeaux, and soon concluded a bargain with the firm of 
Recules de Basmarins Rainbaux et Cie. The vessel, la Vic- 
toire. Captain Le Boursier, was bought by him, with its cargo 
and accoutrements, for 112,000 francs, one-fourth of which 
Lafayette was to pay in cash, and the balance in the course 
of fifteen months from the day of delivery, which was in the 
middle of March, 1777. 

Lafayette, who had employed the interval between the 
purchase of the ship and its readiness for sea, in a trip to Eng- 
land, returned to Paris on the 12th of March, and lay con- 
cealed for three days at Kalb's house in Chaillot, then a sub- 
urb, now a quarter of Paris situated between the Seine and 
the west end of the Elysian Fields, where the final arrange- 
ments were perfected with the American envoy and other 
friends of the enterprise. On the evening of the 16th of 
March, Kalb and Lafayette took post to Bordeaux, and arrived 
there after a three days' journey, on the 19th. 

In consequence of the memoirs written by Lafayette in 
later years, and of the account given by Jared Sparks in the 



102 LIFE OF.KALB. 

appendix to the fifth volume of Washington's Writings of the 
obstacles interposed to the journey of Kalb and Lafayette, 
the belief has become pretty general that the French Govern- 
ment had interfered, for political reasons, to prevent the 
journey from being attempted, and that a mountain of diffi- 
culties had to be surmounted before the Yictoire could weigh 
her anchors. A due regard for the truth of history requires 
us to cut down such romantic exaggerations to their legiti- 
mate proportions. The ministers, instead of opposing, connived 
at the journey of Kalb and Lafayette, so far as their position 
allowed them to do so. Lafayette says as much himself, when, 
in the year 1800, he writes to Madame Geymueller, the 
daughter of his friend,^^ " His [Kalb's] departure was favored 
by the Comte de Broglie, and secretly sanctioned by the 
French Government." What is true of Kalb must apply to 
Lafayette, for they travelled together. 

Even after interdicting the projected Havre expedition, 
the ministry had raised no objections to the preparations 
making by the young nobility for their journey across the 
Atlantic, and participation in ihe war, contenting themselves, 
when interrogated, with expressions of official disapproval, 
intended for the ear of the English ambassador, but not fol- 
lowed up with any active measures. Of course they could 
not give their official benison to those lords who undertook 
to create a sensation by asking for express permission to go 
to America. " This folly " (of going to America), thus Ver- 
gennes defines his course toward Lafayette in the beginning 
of April, 1777,^" " has turned the heads of our young men to 
a degree that you would scarcely credit. Numerous applica- 
tions are made to me on this score. Those who are absolutely 
masters of their own actions I answer by telling them they 



LIFE OF KALB. 103 

can do as they please. Those who ask my advice I dissuade 
from going ; those who ask my orders, are commanded to re- 
main." That the intentions of Kalb and Lafayette were like- 
wise a public secret, is proved by the manifold offers of service 
still to be found among the papers of the former, coming from 
officers of every grade in every part of the country. 

Politically speaking, neither of the travellers was embar- 
rassed ; but family matters long kept Lafayette in suspense, and 
even induced him to make a supererogatory trip back to 
France, after he had safely reached the Spanish harbor of Los 
Pasages. The Due d'Ayen was averse to the enterprise of 
his son-in-law, and, failing to prevail upon him to renounce it, 
procured a secret order of the king, commanding him to ac- 
company his family on a journey to Italy. Even the ladies of 
Paris made light of the attempt to obstruct the noble and 
high-minded undertaking of the marquis. " If the Due 
d'Ayen," said one of them, " will thwart such a son-in-law in 
such a project, he cannot expect to marry his other daugh- 
ters." How little politics had to do with the postponement 
of the journey further appears from the letters written by 
Kalb to his wife during his enforced stay at Bordeaux and 
Los Pasages, which, as he had a surplus of leisure time, detail 
the most trivial occurrences of each day, and are the surest 
guide in arriving at an understanding of the true state of 
affairs. " There is still a possibility," he writes, on the 20th of 
March, 1777, a few days after his arrival in Bordeaux, "that 
our departure may be prevented. I find so many matters 
still to be arranged, that the minister will receive notice of 
the journey of the marquis in time for his prohibitory order 
to arrive before we go to sea. Notwithstanding the ardor 
with which we are at work, nothing is more uncertain than 



104 LIFEOFKALB. 

this voyage. At this moment a courier has been despatched 
to ascertain the effect produced by the news of our proceed- 
ings, and to prevent an interdict from issuing." " We are 
still ignorant," he ccmtinues on the 23d of March, " whether 
our departure will not be prevented, as our vessel, so long de- 
tained already, cannot go out into the stream before to- 
morrow. When the wind will turn God only knows." 

It was on the night of the 25th of March that Kalb and 
Lafayette went on board tlie Victoire, and on the 26th they 
reached the mouth of the Garonne. From this place the 
latter writes at noon of the 26th, on the very eve of stand- 
ing out to sea, " In two hours we shall be in the open sea. 
We are weighing anchor in the most glorious weather. I 
shall certainly write you again before my arrival in America, 
because we have yet to enter a European port, and shall prob- 
ably wait at St. Sebastian for the return of a courier sent 
to Paris." Accordingly, the Victoire first took a southerly 
course to Los Pasages, a little port in the bay of St. Sebas- 
tian, in Spain, and arrived there on the 28th of March. *' It 
will not be necessary," Kalb writes again on the 1st of 
April, 1777, "to wait here for the return of the courier sent 
to Paris, because another has been sent to us from Bordeaux, 
who came here yesterday. He brought the orders of the 
court commanding the marquis to repair to Toulon, there to 
expect the arrival of the Due d'Ayen, and of the Countess de 
Tesse, Ins sister, and to travel with them to Italy. This is 
the end. of his expedition to America, to join the army of 
the insurgents. He is at this moment leaving for Bordeaux, 
whence, if possible, he will proceed to Paris, being loath to 
go to Italy. I am now obliged to w^ait for the courier whom 
La'ayette is to send me, either from Bordeaux, if, on obtain- 



LIFE OF KALB. 105 

ing, from the commaiidant of that place, more satisfactory 
information of the king's commands, he finds it necessary to 
abandon the journey, or from Paris, if he is permitted to go 
there, and then fails in securing the consent of the Due 
d'Ayen to his proceeding. Time will hang heavy on my hands 
here in the mean time. I do not believe he will be able to 
rejoin me, and have advised him to compromise with the 
owner of the ship at a sacrifice of twenty or twenty-five 
thousand francs." 

Thus Lafayette quitted the Spanish territory, where no- 
body molested him, and where his own Government could 
not have followed him if they had wished, and returned to 
France of his own accord, to enter once more upon the ar- 
rangement of his family affairs. He certainly might have 
gone forward at once. Kalb does not speak very favorably 
of the course he was pursuing. " I had flattered myself," he 
writes once more on the 6th of April, from Los Pasages, 
" with the hope of receiving news from the marquis from 
Bordeaux last evening. If they do not arrive to-day or to- 
morrow our stay here will be a very long one, as in that 
case he will not write until he gets to Paris, for certainly 
neither M. de Maurepas nor the Due d'Ayen will permit him 
to rejoin us. If the marquis has not already got a bargain 
with the ship's owner, his blunders will cost him dear. I 
call them blunders, for his course was silly from tlie moment 
he could not make up his mind quietly to execute his pro- 
ject, undisturbed by threats. It was the letter of the 
Vicomte de Coigny, received by the courier sent to him on 
his return to Bordeaux, which produced this sudden change 
of purpose. If that letter had not found him already in the 
boat which was to carry us on board our vessel, I believe 
5* 



106 LIFE OF KALB. 

Lafayette would have returned at once, and, in my opinion, 
he would have acted properly. When he asted my advice 
about what he should do, I thought it my duty to dissuade 
him from disregarding the wishes of his father-in-law and 
the commands of the king. On the contrary, I advised him 
to give way to his family, and to avoid a rupture with them. 
Had he not constantly flattered himself that he had the ap- 
proval of the Due d'Ayen, I would always have warned him 
not to go so far as he went. He had always assured me that 
his family sanctioned his plans, that his father-in-law himself 
intended at some time to go to America with the Vicomte de 
Noailles, and that even Madame Lafayette had been made 
acquainted with his intentions by her parents, and would 
approve of them. I have always thought him to blame for 
keeping the matter secret from his wife until the moment of 
his departure. Had he told me in Paris all that he has ad- 
mitted since, I would have remonstrated most earnestly 
against the whole scheme. As it is, the affair will cost him 
some money. But if it be said that he has done a foolish 
thing, it may be answered that he acted from the most hon- 
orable motives, and that he can hold up his head before all 
high-minded men." 

"The reasons which drove us to enter this port," says 
Kalb in his letter of April 6th, " still detain us here, for we 
must have the permission of the marquis, or of the owner 
of the vessel, for proceeding on our voyage. By a letter of 
Messrs. Rainbaux & Cie I learn that he reached Bordeaux 
on the 3d, and immediately sent a courier to Paris, whose 
return he is awaiting. This shows that he is reluctant to 
abandon his project and his vessel, and still hopes to obtain 
the consent of his family and of M. de Maurepas. I hardly 



LIFE OP KALB. 107' 

tliiiik he will succeed. It will not be before tlie 11th that I 
sl.all know what to expect, even if Lafayette should receive 
an immediate answer from Paris. This long delay is intoler- 
erable. I shall be too late for the opening of the campaign, 
and am so much the more naortified. as Mr. Deane offered mo 
a passage in one of his ships. Should the matter be still 
longer protracted, I shall either return to Paris, or betake 
myself to the Isle of Re or Nantes, to wait for news from 
Deane." 

" At this moment," continues Kalb on the 12th of April, 
" the post brings me a letter from the marquis dated the 5th,> 
at Bordeaux. He says that he was refused permission to 
proceed, and that he fears being compelled to go to Toulon. 
He is now waiting for the return of his courier sent to Paris, 
and will at once inform me of the answer he receives." 
" The marquis writes from Bordeaux, under date of the 12th 
inst.," Kalb goes on to say on the 15th, "that he was on the 
point of leaving for Marseilles, where the royal order re- 
quires him to report himself to-day. He says that the court 
devotes great attention to this affair of his, but he still hopes 
to gain over the Due d'Ayen, so as to be at liberty to rejoin 
me. He therefore requests me not to sail befoue receiving 
another letter from him from Toulon or some other point. 
If I am to wait until he gets to Marseilles, I shall have to 
remain here until the 26th. Lafayette's letter shows that 
the ship is still held in his name. He requests me to have an 
eye to his interests, and to see that his investment is realized 
as Eoon as possible." 

"At this moment," Kalb finally writes on the 17th of 
April, " the marquis has arrived, and is prepared to set out 
with us in a day or two. He came to this coiulusion by 



108 LIFE OF ^ALB. 

receiving assurances from every one in Paris, that none othei 
til an the Due d'Ayen had procured the royal order, that all 
the world is in favor of Lafayette's enterprise and sorely dis- 
satisfied with his father-in-law for having obstructed his 
course, and that, finally, the ministers, on being asked their 
real sentiments in the matter, had answered that they would 
have said nothing at all' but for the complaints of the Due 
d'Ayen. We have therefore resolved to steer for our 
destined port, if no unforeseen obstacle intervenes. This is 
the last letter I shall write you, if not from Europe, at least 
from this harbor." 

The Yictoire actually sailed from Los Pasages on Sunday 
the 20th of April, in charge of Captain Le Boursier. Kalb 
and Lafayette v/ere accompanied by the Yicomte de Mauroy, 
who had also received the commission of a major-general 
from Deane, of Colonels Delesser and Valfort, Lieutenant- 
colonels de Fayolles and Franval, Majors Dubuysson and 
de Gimat, the adjutants of Kalb and Lafayette, and Dubois 
Martin, of Captains de Yrigny, de Bedaulx, and de la Colombe, 
and of the American Brice who had joined the cortege at 
Deane's recommendation, and who is praised by Kalb as an 
excellent and amiable young man. Of the French oflScers 
three had taken their discharge, while nine were still in active 
service." If Sj)arks, in the appendix to his Writings of 
Washington, says that Kalb and eleven other officers con- 
stituted Lafayette's suite^ the statement, so far as Kalb is 
concerned, is not only incorrect, but grows out of an entire 
misconception of European habits and customs in reference 
to matters of rank and title.^® An old soldier like Kalb, 
leaving France as a brigadier-general, will not place himself 
under the orders of a lieutenant of nineteen ; and the latter, in 



LIFE OF KALB. 109 

60 well-ordered a military hierarchy as that of the French 
army, will never dream of expecting anything of the kind. 
Moreover, the social standing of the two men was entirely 
equal, Lafayette being, at most, the superior in point of 
wealth only, while on the other hand the Comte de Broglie 
had placed his young friend under Kalb's guardianship. 
Again, if tlie American standard be applied, it will be re- 
membered that Kalb as w^ell as Lafayette ha 1 the promise 
of a major-general's commission from Dcane, Kalb's seniority 
to date from the 7th of November, 1776, while that of La- 
fayette was of the 7th of December, for the express purpose 
of making the former outrank the latter. Kalb as the senior 
olncer and Lafayette as the owner of the shij?, were undoubt- 
edly the leading men of the enterprise, as is stated by the 
former himself in his letter to his wife of the 6th of April, 
1777. 

After a long voyage of forty-five days, witliout any 
accident or noticeable adventure, the Yictoire made South 
Inlet in the bay of Georgetown on the 13th of June, 1777. 
The spot is in the State of South Carolina, about half a 
degree north of Charleston, and is now marked on the map, 
in honor of our travellers, by two hamlets, Kalb and L^u 
Grange (Lafayette's country-seat). At first the captain 
himself could not tell where they were. Kalb, Lafayette, 
and Brice therefore mounted a boat with seven sailors and 
pulled on shore to look for a pilot. In the bay they met 
with two or three ignorant negro oyster fishermen, who were 
unable to give any coherent account of the locality, but 
could only say that they belonged to a major in the provin- 
cial force, and that the coast was rendered insecure by 
hostile cruisers, Kalb and his comrades quitted their own 



no LIFE OF ^ALB. 

boat, and directed the slaves to convey them to their master. 
It was ten o'clock in the evening before they reached the 
plantation. Their host was Major Hueger, of German 
descent, a man highly esteemed in the colonies, and the 
father of the same Hueger who subsequently figured so 
largely in Lafayette's unsuccessful effort to escape from the 
prisons of Olmutz. He received the strangers hospitably, 
informed them of the state of public affairs, and, after having 
offered them refreshment, furnished them with horses, on 
M-hich, two or three days afterward, they rode to Charleston, 
arriving there in a scorching heat on the l^th of June. The 
Victcire, which drew too much water for Georgetown Bay, 
meanwhile thieaded her way in safety through the English 
cruisers, and reached Charleston the same day with Kalb 
and lafayette. Here they sold their cargo to great advan- 
tage, so that the latter was handsomely repaid for his risks 
and outlay.'^ 

The preparations for the overland journey north occupied 
full ten days. Kalb, Lafayette, Dubuysson, Gimat, Bedaulx, 
and Brice, set out on the 27th of June. As the heat of the 
weather compelled them to make short stages, they were 
more than a month in getting to Philadelphia, where Con- 
gress was then sitting. On the 18th of July they reached 
Petersburg, Virginia, and on the 23d of the same month, 
Annapolis. Here Kalb and Lafayette alone arrived in good 
health; they therefore left their companions behind, and 
entered Philadelphia on the 27th of July. 

On presenting themselves to the President of Congress 
on the following day they were received with great coolness, 
and referred to Lovell, the chairman of the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs, to whom they handed their letters and re- 



LIFE OF KALB. HI 

commendations. He informed them, to their great astonish- 
ment, that Congress refused to ratify the contracts and 
appointments made by Deane." The latter was accused of 
having transgressed his powers, not having been authorized 
to fill the highest positions in the army with men of his choice. 
The American generals had been greatly incensed at the 
claims recently preferred by du Coudray, and had threatened 
to resign in a body if ever again visited with similar en- 
croachments upon their vested rights. 

Du Coudray, having reached Philadelphia a few weeks 
previous to Kalb, and presuming upon the services rendered 
by him to the American cause in France, as well as upon the 
bargain concluded with Deane, had claimed in addition to 
the rank of a major-general, not only the command of the 
artillery, but also that of the engineers. A cry of indigna- 
tion at the pretension of the foreigner arose in the army. 
Brigadier-General Knox, being himself in the command of 
the artillery, and therefore most immediately threatened, 
was particularly hostile. Although Steuben declares*' that 
at the time Knox had not an idea of the manner in which 
a field-piece should be handled on the advance or in retreat, 
of course he never thought of treating that as a reason for 
resigning his position to a foreigner. He gained over Gen- 
erals Greene and Sullivan, and the three tendered their 
resignation on the rumor that du Coudray 's demands had 
been complied with. Congress rebuked the menace " as an 
interference with their rights, and an insinuation of want of 
confidence in their sense of justice, and exacted an apology 
upon declining to accept the resignations ; but, on the 15th 
of July, 1777, they also disavowed the agreement made be- 
tween Deane and du Coudray,*^ and endeavored to conciliate 



112 LIFEOFKALB. 

both parties by bestowing on the latter the rank of major- 
general, on the 11th of August,** together with the position 
of Inspector-General of Ordnance. Du Coudray, although 
clearly in the right, had the good sense to acquiesce in this 
arrangement, seeing that it implied only an indirect refusal 
of his services, the more so as the functions of his office 
were never defined ; he therefore applied for permission, 
shortly before the battle of Brandy wine, to join the army as 
a volunteer, with the rank of a captain," but was drowned 
on the way thither on the 16th of September, in the Schuyl- 
kill, and thus disappears entirely from the stage. 

Kalb and Lafayette, with their comrades, were so unfor- 
tunate as to make their appearance during the pendency of 
this imbrooclio. Here were thirteen foreis^n officers callino^ for 
appointments, three of them, Kalb, Lafayette, and Mauroy, 
with the rank of major-generals. The objection raised 
against du Coudray applied with increased force to the new 
comers, none the less that they also had undeniable rights to 
the performance of the stipulations entered into with Deane. 
Congress thought the best means of disembarrassing them- 
selves consisted in repudiating every claim presented by Kalb 
and his friends. Lafayette was the first to extricate himself. 
What made his case the strongest was the private letter of 
Deane and Franklin to Congress, dated the 25th of Ma;-, 1717, 
in which they say *^ " that the marquis, a young nobleman of 
great family connections and great wealth, desired to serve 
our armies, and that the civilities and respect that might be 
shown to him would be serviceable to our affiiirs in France, as 
pleasing not only*to his powerful relations and to the court, 
but to the whole French nation." Resting upon this advocacy 
of his service, Lafayette at once declared his readiness to 



LIFE OF KALB. 113 

enter the army as a volunteer, and without any claim to pay 
or pension. In view of such prospects in Europe and such 
advantageous offers in America, Congress did not hesitate 
long. On the 31st of July they appointed Lafayette a major- 
general in consideration of his zeal, his illustrious family, and 
his distinguished connections. Congress had judged well and 
wisely ; the resolution contributed materially to influence 
public opinion in favor of an open war with England, and of 
an alliance with the United States."^ 

Lafayette could not but be sensible that such a preference 
over a veteran officer like Kalb, as whose protege he had 
come into the country, was in glaring contrast to their re- 
spective merits. He accordingly had the delicacy to assure 
Kalb that he would accept the proffered rank only on condi- 
tion of the same position being given to tliem both. 

Kalb, on his part, was heartily glad of tlie good fortune 
of his young friend, and sufficiently disinterested to decline 
his proposal. On the contrary he advised him to join the 
army forthwith, as, after the sensation produced by his de- 
parture from France, it would not be well for a young man 
of his time of life to return before having achieved honor and 
distinction in a campaign or two. Lafayette took this excel- 
lent advice, and, a few wc^ks later, took part in the battle of 
Brandyvvine, where he was slightly wounded. Kalb took a 
fatherly interest in this little wound, which, he said, would 
make a good impression everywhere, and would raise his 
young friend in general estimation. 

To the President of Congress Kalb wrote on the 1st of 
August, 1777.. sharply and bitterly criticising the course which 
his affairs had taken, and convincingly demonstrating the jus- 
tice of his claim. 



114 LIFE OF K A LB. 

" An accidental lameness," he says, " prevented me from 
calling on any member of Congress to know what has been 
or shall be decided in regard to the agreement between Mr. 
Deane and myself, and not to trouble the gentlemen of the 
Comitee for french officers, or multiply their business by 
writing in french, I take the liberty of applying to your ex- 
cellency for information on that account, in explaining myself 
in english as much as I may be able to do it. I was vastly 
surprised at my being introduced to Mr. Lowell to hear him 
(almost in public) exclaim loudly against Mr. Deane's proceed- 
ings, and disapprove all the conventions this agent has made 
with several officers, as being contrary to his powers. To 
which I answer that a public man ought to know what powers 
he hath from liis constituents or hath not ; that Mr. Deane is 
generally esteemed to be a candid man and a man of sense ; 
that whatever he may have agreed to with others, and this too 
perhaps in a language he did not understand, mine is in eng- 
lish, and so very plain that it can admit of no various inter- 
pretations ; for that reason I will strictly keep to the text of 
it as for the rank ; as to interest, I will not be too rigid but 
rely on Congress' pleasure. As I have till now fulfilled my 
part of that agreement, I wish Congress would do theirs, 
without loss of time, and let me hear of their resolution 
thereof. I would not be a simple spectator in the scenes pre- 
paring for opening. 

" If you will not ratify Mr. Deane's engagement and ap- 
point me as major-general in your army, I am ready to return 
to Europe, but think myself entitled to ask you a sufficient sum 
for my going home. I received from Mr. Deane 1,200 livres 
French money, and certainly by going to and fro in France, 
by his direction, and all other expenses until my arrival at 



LIFE OF KALB. " 115 

Philadelphia, I spent twice as much. And though I ardently 
desired to serve America, I did not mean to do so in spending 
part of my own and my children's fortune — for what is deem- 
ed generosity in the Marquis de Lafayette would be down- 
right madness in me, who does not possess one of the first-rate 
fortunes. If I were in his circumstances I should perhaps 
have acted like he did. I am very glad that you granted his 
wishes; he is a worthy young man, and no one will outdo him 
in enthusiasm in your cause of liberty and independence. My 
wishes will always be that his successes as general-major will 
equal his zeal and your expectation. But I must confess, 
sir, that this distinction between him and myself is painful and 
very displeasing to me. We came on the same errand, with 
the same promises, and as military men and for military pur- 
poses, I flatter myself that if there was to be any preference 
it would be due to me. 84 years of constant attendance 
on military service, & my station & rank in that way, may 
well be laid in the scale with his disinterestedness, and be at 
least of the same weight and value ; this distinction is very 
unaccountable in an infant state of a commonwealth, but this 
is none of my Lusiness. I only want to know whether Con- 
gress will appoint me as general-major, and with the seniority 
I have a right to expect this (for I cannot stay here in a lesser 
capacity). It would seem very odd and ridiculous to the 
french ministry and all experienced military men to see 
me placed under the command of the Marquis de la Fayette. 
If, on the contrary, it will not be agreeable to the U. 
S., I ask your excellency to give me full satisfaction for the 
purpose of going back, so that I may leave this country as 
soon as possible. I hope there will be no difficulty in fulfill- 
ing my last request, for I should be sorry to be compelled to 



116 LIFEOF*KALB. 

carry my case against Mr, Deane or his successors for dam 
ages. And such an action would injure his credit and negotia- 
tions, and those of the state at court. 

"I do not think that either my name, my services, or my 
person are proper objects to be trifled with or laughed at. I 
cannot tell you, sir, how deeply I feel the injury done to me, 
and how ridiculous it seems to me to make people leave their 
homes, families, and affairs to cross the sea under a 1000 
different dangers, to be received and to be looked at with 
contempt by those from whom you were to expect but warm 
thanks." * 

Although Kalb was entirely justified in what he claimed, 
he was at the same time sufficiently liberal to appreciate the 
difficulties with which Congress was then contending. They 
had to choose between displeasing their own officers, men 
who had sacrificed their livelihoods to the service of the coun- 
try in the field, in some cases with distinction ard success, and 
offending foreigners who, however generous in their offers, 
were, with the single exception of Kalb, ignorant of the lan- 
guage of the country, and of untried merits. For, whatever 
advantages they derived from a more thorough military edu- 
cation and more extensive experience, it was yet by no means 
certain that they would be able to make their, qualities avail- 
able on new ground and with new material. Congress was 
obliged to consider the question whether they ought to risk a ' 
rupture with men like Greene and Sullivan, whether they 
ought to go the length of driving the native officers out of the 
service, and, above all, whether their course would meet with 
the approbation of the army and the people. Of course it 
was out of the question for them to come to a declared issue 

* A true copy of the original letter. 



LIFEOFKALB. 117 

with either the one or the other. Even at the hazard of a 
quarrel with the French officers, they had no course to pursue 
except to disavow Deane's course, and take sides with the 
native generals. According to the letter of the contract Con- 
gress was clearly in the wrong, and would have been the 
losing party if the matter had been litigated before the civil 
tribunals of their own country ; but in political and State 
matters it is frequently better to cut a knot than to untie it. 
Kalb himself frankly admits in a letter to his wife of the 19th 
of September, 1777, that he and his company were too nu- 
merous, and invested with too many positions of a high grade, 
not to have excited the natural discontent of the American 
officers. 

On the 8th of September Congress resolved that Deane 
had no authority to make the conventions relied upon by the 
French officers, for which reason Congress were not bound 
to ratify or tofulfil them ; that, nevertheless, thanks be given 
to those gentlemen, and that their expenses to this continent 
and on their return to France be paid. Kalb now prepared 
a statement of the expenses prepared by each individual, and 
submitted them to Congress, who, on the 14th of September, 
scrupulously complied with their responsibilities in this par- 
ticular. Some of the French officers who had come with the 
Yictoire returned by way of Boston and Portsmouth, others 
by way of Southern ports. 

Kalb intended to join the latter group. He had barely 
recovered from a fever which had confined him to his bed and 
room for six full weeks. On the 15th of September he left 
Philadelphia, with Delesser, Yalfoiit, and Dubuysson, took 
the route by way of Bethlehem, where he paid his Moravian 
countrymen a visit of which he has left a minute description, 



118 LIFEOF*KALB. 

and was about to proceed thenoe to Lancaster, when a mes« 
senger of Congress reached him with the news that he had 
been elected a major-general on the day of his departure. 
During his stay at Philadelphia, and the negotiations in which 
he was the principal actor, he had made the acquaintance of 
several of the most influential members of Congress, and had 
so impressed them with a sense of his efficiency, that they en- 
deavored to secure his services for the United States. They 
accordingly moved the creation of a new major-generalship. 
The motion was adopted, and he elected to the post, on the 
\15th of September." 

On being advised of this transaction, Kalb took a night 
to consider upon it, and next morning declined the offer, 
stating his reasons. However, at the solicitations of the en- 
voy of Congress, he promised to reconsider the matter, and to 
forward his answer to Philadelphia in a few days. A prin- 
cipal reason for his refusal was the fear that the returning 
French officers, who had the same rights and prospects with 
himself, would take offence at his separating himself from 
them, and w^ould make representations unfavorable to him- 
self to the Comte de Broglie and the French minister. 

" Congress replied," wrote Kalb to his wife,*^" " that they 
had no objection whatever to those gentlemen, except that 
they could not understand a word of English, and were 
therefore in the first instance incapable of serving in the 
army or in the country. I have meditated further over the 
matter, and have considered it in a twofold aspect. If I re- 
turn, no one can complain of me, for I have done no man 
harm, and have served every one to the extent of my powers. 
But in that case I shall attain none of the objects for which 
I have undertaken this journey. If I remain, Yjlfort, who 



LIFEOFKALB. 121 

TIDING FOR THE FUTPRE. — DeSIRES TO Go BaCK TO EuROPE. — BuT RE- 
MAINS FOR THE Present. 

TT^ALB was prepared to leave at once, if his appearaiice 
in camp should give rise to disagreeable remarks, or 
his reception should be other than a cheerful one. But, being 
cordially welcomed by all the American officers, he assumed 
the command, in the early part of November, of a division 
assigned him, which was formed of New England regiments." 

He was assailed, however, by the petty envy of the Irish- 
man Conway. This brigadier, who subsequently acquired an 
unenviable prominence in the annals of the American revolu- 
tion by the cabal, already inaugurated, and since designated 
by his name, felt himself injured and foreshortened in his 
claims by the appointment of Kalb as major-general. Al- 
though, like the latter, he had quitted the French service with 
the rank of brigadier, he endeavored to make it appear that 
he had formerly been Kalb's superior officer, and was now 
unjustly subordinate to him. "It is with exquisite concern," 
writes Conway complainingly to Congress,^^ "that I find my- 
self slighted and forgot, when you have offered rank to per- 
sons who cost you a great deal of money, and have never 
rendered you the least service. Baron de Kalb, to whom 
you have offered the rank of Major-General, is my inferior in 
France." 

And thus he proceeded to utter his complaints and objec- 
tions, winding up with a demand of a major-general's com- 
mission. He approached Washington in the same manner ; 
but the latter knew his man too well to be influenced by 
threats, and coolly repelled his advances. Nevertheless, by 
the aid of powerful friends in Congress, and in the teeth of 
Washington's well-fo mded remonstrances, he managed to 
6 



122 " LIFE OF KALB. 

have himself appointed, on the 13th of December, 1777, in- 
spector-general of the army, with the rank of major-general. 
He however forfeited this position in April, 1778, when, hav- 
ing, on an unimportant occasion, renewed his threat of re- 
signing, he was taken at his word, and his subsequent exculpa- 
tory declarations refused a hearing. 

Kalb gave little heed to these annoyances, and soon had 
the good fortune to gain the esteem of the officers, and the 
appreciation of the commander-in-chief We first meet with 
his name in the middle of November, 1777, when he was sent 
by Washington, with. Generals St. Clair and Knox, to exam- 
ine the fortifications at Red Bank/* On the 24th of the same 
month, some days after his return from Jersey, he attended a 
council of war, convened for the purpose of expressing an 
opinion of the feasibility of making an immediate attack on 
Philadelphia. Kalb was one of eleven generals who unequiv- 
ocally opposed the undertaking in question. As but four 
voted in its favor, it was not attempted. 

In his letters to the Comte de Broglie and to his wife, 
Kalb not only gives a full report of this service, but also 
carries his narrative back to the date of his arrival in Phila- 
delphia, and discusses the subsequent course of events. These 
letters serve no less to characterize the writer than to throw 
light upon the operations in the field, and thus furnish an 
important contribution to the history of the war. The opin- 
ions he expresses may seem harsh and even unfeeling ; they 
may appear just to some, and unjust to others; but we must 
remember that a European, who could have no idea of the 
subsequent developments of American history, would naturally 
judge far more critically than a native, or one whose feehnga 
were entirely identified with the American army. We who 



LIFE OF KALB. 123 

have the opportunity of contemplating men and events in the 
light of after times, look upon them with different eyes from 
their contemporaries. The variance between Kalb's opinion 
and the views now held of Washington's strategy, can be, at 
all events, no reason for suppressing these letters. 

"I had the honor, M. le Corate," Kalb writes at Lancas- 
ter, the 24th of September, 1777, to the Comte de Broglie," 
" to send you from South Carolina Nos. 1, 2, and 3 of my 
letters, containing the announcement of our arrival in Ameri- 
ca. No. 4 was dated at Philadelphia, and details our recep- 
tion there. I also informed you therein of the appointment 
of M. de Lafayette as major-general, without pay or command, 
and the consequent resolution of all his comrades — except his 
aide-de-camp M. de Gimat — to return to Europe. I trust 
these letters have come safely to hand. On the 17th of Sep- 
tember I reported, in cypher, the battle of Wilmington and 
its consequences. Having reason to fear, however, that that 
writing has been lost, I shall recapitulate the most interesting 
events which have occurred since the close of July. 

" On the 30th of that month the English fleet appeared in 
the Delaware, numbering twenty sail. General Washington 
was apprised of this manoeuvre, and of the instructions of the 
English Government to General Howe, directing him to re- 
duce Philadelphia at any cost, and arrived with his army, the 
same day, nine miles below the town. After remaining there 
three days he advanced to Wilmington, on the Christina 
River. When the fleet stood out to sea, Washington march- 
ed up the stream to a point thirty miles above Philadelphia, 
partly to secure the crossing into the Jerseys, and partly to 
be ready for any further movements of the enemy. No soon- 
er was it ascertained that General Howe had entered Chesa- 



124 LIFE OF KALB. 

peake Bay, tlian Wasliiugton resumed his march, and took 
up a position fifteen miles below Philadelphia, in order to re- 
sist a landing of the English, wherever attempted. Howe 
finally disembarked his troops at Head of Elk [now Elkton], 
whereupon Washington advanced to Wilmington. However, 
he lost so much time that the English succeeded in occupying 
a strong position on a height, called Iron Hill, where the Gen- 
eral massed his corps, supposed to number thirteen or four- 
teen thousand men. These constituted nearly the whole 
English force, only the last levies of Tory recruits having been 
left at New York. To the shame of the country it must be 
said that New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland 
contain a large number of these Tories, a circumstance well 
understood by the English Government, when they ordered 
the revolution to be combated from the middle provinces as 
a base of operations. 

"On the 9th and 10th of September General Howe made 
a feint of turning Washington's flank. As he approached 
the insurgent army, the latter retreated out of its position 
on the heights of Brandy wine, where it could have baffled all 
the efforts of the enemy, by simply holding the precipitous 
bank of the river. On the 1 1th General Howe made a feigned 
attack upon a ford strongly defended by Washington, but 
carried his main body over a ford which the Americans had 
overlooked, and then fell upon them with so much vigor, 
that after a stout resistance, they were beaten and scattered. 
They are said to have lost eight field-pieces, and about six 
hundred men in killed, wounded, and prisoners.* The 

* Owing to a remarkable similarity in the coaformation of the ground, 
the disposition of General Howe was exactly Kke those made by the King of 
Prussia at the battle of Kunersdorf, when he caused General Fink to engage 
the attention of Soltikow until he succeeded in carrying his army across the 



LIFE OF KALB. 125 

various engagements lasted, with some interruptions, from 
seven o'clock in the morning till sundown. The Marquis de 
Lafayette was wounded by a ball, which entered his left 
thigh. The loss of the English must have been considerable, 
for they did not venture to pursue, but remained several 
days on the field of battle. Advancing, at length, to Chester, 
they retired to Wilmington, at the approach of General 
Washington. The latter, after the affair, had retreated first 
to Chester, next to Darby, and on the third day to Schuylkill. 
Thence he reported to Congress that his troops were reorgan- 
ized and in high spirits, and anxious to be led once more 
against the enemy. On the 19th he encountered the British, 
marching in three columns, so far apart that if the Americans 
had taken the right column on the flank, which they could 
easily have done, they would have totally routed the English, 
cutting off their retreat. Indeed they would have been 
crushed to atoms, their fleet not having being able to leave 
Chesapeake Bay, and of course not to enter the Delaware, 
thus putting them at the mercy of the enemy, if the Ameri- 
can commander had known how to improve the advantages 
of his position, and those of surprising the enemy. But in- 
stead of so doing he frittered away his time in slow and ill- 
conceived manoeuvres, which only resulted in directing the 
attack upon the head or strongest point of the column, and 
in giving the enemy time to bring up the other columns. 
When at length the dispositions for an attack were completed, 
a shower came on, so violent that every piece refused to go 
off, the ammunition became useless, and each army went its 
way unmolesting and unmolested. Washington, forgetting 

river at a point higher up the stream, whence he assailed and drove the right 
wing of the Russians. (MS. notes of Adjutant-Cap tain F. von Muenchhausen, 
who served under General How:*.) 



126 LIFE OP KALB. 

that the enemy's powder was in no better condition than his 
own, retreated to the Schuylkill in great haste, marching 
night and day, amid torrents of rain. His troops, often up 
to their waists in water, dwindled away to such an extent, 
that of what was said to be twenty thousand men, the strong- 
est body CA'er put into the field by the colonies, he had but 
six thousand remaining. With this feeble remnant he was 
forced to keep on the defensive. No sooner did General 
Howe perceive his own escape and the movements of the en- 
emy, than he marched in pursuit, and concentrated his col- 
umns on the Schuylkill. Washington threw a division 
across the river to observe the enemy, and another into his 
rear, to harass him in case of an engagement. The plan 
was well devised, but ill executed. General Wayne, who 
commanded the latter division, suffered himself to be sur- 
prised, with a loss of six hundred men, whereupon both divis- 
ions were ordered to recross the river. To crown all Howe 
executed a masked movement upon his right wing, crossed 
at a ford about twelve miles above Philadelphia, and posted 
himself between the American army and the town, which 
thus fell into his hands on the 28th of September. Washing- 
ton is now massing his force, for the purpose of driving the 
enemy out of the town again, before the arrival of the fleet. 
All are eagerly expecting what a day may bring forth. In 
Canada the English General is said to have taken Ticonder- 
oga about the end of June — through the pusillanimity or 
treason of the commander. The insurgents were already 
driven back to within twenty miles of Albany. Now, how- 
ever, the scales have turned. . It is said that the English have 
been defeated by General Gates in several engagements. 
General Burgoyne, who has lately arrived, is said to be 



LIFE OF KALB. 127 

wounded, and Ticonderoga so hemmed in, that it can hold 
out no longer; while a number of English galleys are alleged 
to have fallen into the hands of the enemy. 

"I have not yet told you anything of the character of 
General Washington. He is the most amiable, kind-hearted, 
and upright of men ; but as a General he is too slow, too in- 
dolent, and far too weak ; besides, he has a tinge of vanity in 
his composition, and overestimates himself. In my opinion 
whatever success he may have will be owing to good luck 
and to the blunders of his adversaries, rather than to his abil- 
ities. I may even say that he does not know how to improve 
upon the grossest blunders of the enemy. He has not yet 
overcome his old prejudice against the French. 

" If I return to Europe, it will be with the greatest mor- 
tification, as it is impossible to execute the great design I 
have so gladly come to subserve. M. de Valfort will tell you 
that the project in question is totally impracticable ; it would 
be regarded no less as an act ofcrjnng injustice against Wash- 
ington, than as an outrage on the honor of the country." 

" On the 4th of this month," contin,ues Kalb, writing to 
de Broglie from New York, October 11th, " Washington, 
having marched to Germantown, six miles from Philadelphia, 
the day before, under cover of a dense fog, fell upon three 
columns of the English force. He made the attack with his 
right wing, in two columns (the left wing under General 
Greene having foiled to come up in time), drove in the enemy 
a mile and a half beyond the lines of his outposts, and only re- 
tired after an obstinate combat of three hours' duration. The 
English did not venture to follow. Washington again drew 
up his troops in line of battle, determined to renew the at- 
tack on the arrival of Greene's column. But, after waiting 



128 LIFE OF feALB. 

for the latter in vain, lie abandoned the plan for that day, 
and fell back upon Germantown. 

" Congress, now in session at York, have been assured by 
the commander that they will soon be in a condition to re- 
transfer their sittings to Philadelphia. Indeed, the equipment 
of the troops is going on with vigor. The Americans seem 
to be bent upon using up or capturing the royal army at all 
hazards, even if every Englishman should cost them four of 
their own. In my opinion they should have formed and car- 
ried oat this resolution long ago, for in the end they cannot 
fail to succeed in driving the British from the continent. 

" One obstacle remains, however, which exceeds all others 
— the absence of a navy. Without assistance from abroad 
they will never get one. As long as they cannot engage in 
commerce, they will suffer for want of many articles of use 
and consumption, which, for the present, they cannot think of 
producing for themselves. And how, without commercial 
prosperity, will they ever discharge the enormous debt the 
war has fastened upon them ? 

" Several members of Congress are urging me to accept 
the offered commission and join the army at once, as a serious 
engagement is expected to take place within a few days. 
Unless, however, Washington gives me the same advice, and 
assigns me to the vacant division as Congress has promised, 
I shall take my leave, and return to Europe in company with 
M. de Valfort." 

" I have the honor, M. le Comte," thus reads Kalb's next 
letter, dated November the 2d, 1777, in camp, fourteen miles 
from Philadelphia, "in ray last, to give you an account of the 
battle of Wilmington and the affair of Germantown. Since 
then no events of importance have occurred. On the 14th I 



LIFE OF KALB. 129 

reached the army, and was very kindly received by the com- 
mander-in-chief, without whose consent I was unwilling to 
take command of the division intended for me by Congress. 
This course of mine seems to have given him pleasure, as he 
intends to demand the promotion of two brigadiers, his 
friends, and the removal of two major-generals. In that case 
the Marquis de Lafayette, as well as myself, would shortly 
command a division. As for the rest, I believe the service 
will not be attended with any particular amenities, nor will it 
be productive of glory. It is a great deal that a stranger 
does not dishonor himself in his own eyes and that of his 
countrymen. In this respect such extraordinary things occur 
here as would scarcely be credited in Europe. An officer, for 
instance, will leave his command at the beginning of a fight, 
informing his suj^erior that he has something else to do some- 
where else, or omitting to make this explanation (which will 
do equally well), will remain away till the action is over, and 
will then return, and nobody refers to the subject ; he returns 
to duty, pockets his pay, and repeats the manoeuvre at the 
next opportunity. Nothing of this kind is to be imputed to 
any of the French officers now serving here; on the contrary, 
all the world agree that those among them known to me per- 
sonally or by name, are brave men. It is tiue, however, that 
some of them are unpopular, partly on account of their quar- 
l rels among themselves, and partly on account of the perplex- 
1 ities occasioned by their ignorance of the language. 

" Our caravan has dwindled down to a very small number. 
It has met with many difficulties, as Congress could not be- 
stow the higher charges claimed by many of them, who would 
have been greatly puzzled to understand their instructions, 
and still more so to give orders themselves. These difficulties 
6* 



130 LIFE OF «ALB. 

were further aggravated by the demands of the deceased du 
Coudray, for at first it was desired to retain in or take into the 
service all who had either made some progress in the English 
language, or at least seemed to be making efforts to acquire 
it. Had M. de Valfort consented to remain, Congress would 
undoubtedly have made him a brigadier. I might even have 
made that a condition of my own entrance into the army. I 
would certainly have made this stipulation for no one else. 
The others indulged in complaints against various members 
of Congress, against the Government, and against the service 
in general. These remarks were repeated and interpreted as 
indications of ill-will to the country. I believe I forgot to in- 
form you in my last that I told Dubois Martin before his de- 
parture, that it depended upon him alone whether he would 
be my aid or not ; and that he declined the offer on the sol© 
pretext that he had not any military equipments. 

" I beseech you, M. le Comte, to rest assured that I shall 
always execute your wishes and commands in respectful devo- 
tion, and that I have done all in my power for the officers 
under your protection. The Marquis de Lafayette and M. de 
Valfort are acquainted with my conduct in this respect from 
the day we set out until the moment of my appointment as 
major-general. I will not here specify the measures taken 
and the labor performed for them, as it is only necessary to 
compare the treatment of the officers who came with me, with 
that of the companions of du Coudray, to decide whether my 
efforts and my credit have been of any avail or not. Our 
company now consists of the Marquis de Lafayette, MM. de 
Grammont and Brijje, his aidt, M. Capitaine, who has not yet 
arrived, but will certainly remain, MM. de la Colombo and 
du Vrigny, whom the marquis hopes to employ in the cav- 



LIFE OF KALB. 131 

airy, M. Bedaulx, who meets with difficulties in spite of his 
connections and his philological acquirements, M. Dubuysson, 
and myself. What has particularly induced me to stay is the 
desire to see your adherents more largely represented here 
than the porteges of the other gentlemen of the court, who 
have taken part in American affairs. Almost all the artiller- 
ists and engineers who have come with du Coudray seem 
anxious to go back. The fault is their own, as Congress is 
only willing to appoint them with the rank they claim, while 
they ask for a great deal of money. I do not know what will 
be the end of these disputes, or the resolutions of Congress ; 
but I am glad I have always stood aloof from du Coudray's 
friends. Their demands had already produced so much dis- 
satisfaction at the time of my arrival in the country, that any 
interference with their affairs would only have brought me 
into trouble. 

" Reports from the North are to the effect tliat the Eng- 
lish General Burgoyne has capitulated, and that his entire 
army are prisoners of war. General Howe still holds out in 
Philadelphia. We are fourteen miles from the city, and are 
endeavoring to hem it in more and more. For three weeks 
Howe has been unsuccessfully operating against Fort Mifflin, 
which is on an island in the Delaware near Philadelphia, as 
well as Red Bank, on the left bank of the same river. These 
forts are protected by three American frigates and a number 
of gunboats, which blew up an English man-of-war of six 
guns and a frigate of thirty-two guns on the 22d of October. 
On the same day an assault on Red Bank was repulsed with 
loss. We took eighty prisoners, including several officers, 
and Colonel Donop, who was severely wounded. If the forts 
bold out, so as to prevent the English fleet from getting to 



132 LIFE OF ^ALB. 

the town before the setting in of the hard frosts, it must 
stand out to sea again, and General Howe will find it difficult 
to maintain his present position." 

" Colonel Donop," says Kalb in concluding this report 
on the 7th of November, "has died, deeply mourned by his 
soldiers. His last words were, that he died a sacrifice to the 
cupidity of his sovereign. The successes in the North are 
confirmed. If His Majesty could resolve upon a war, how 
favorable would be the present moment ! It would be easy 
to intercept at sea the 5,100 men of Burgoyne's army who 
are now to be conveyed to Europe (but were retained in 
America). A French squadron of ten or twelve line-of- 
battle ships, sent at once into Delaware Bay, could force the 
whole English fleet to surrender. In consequence of such a 
victory the English in Philadelphia v/ould fall into our 
hands at the same time. What glory for France, to finish 
the war in less than a campaign, and to dictate terms to 
England. The blow would be certain. I have not the least 
doubt that the English fleet will resume its present position 
next year, if General Howe does not evacuate Philadelphia, 
which he will do only at the utmost need. I begin to believe 
that our forts will not hold out long enough to compel him 
to retreat. In that case he will still need the fleet, to pro- 
vision his army, as much as he does now." 

" Since my last letter of November the 7th, M. le 
Comte," Kalb goes on to say, in his letter of December 12, 
1777, written in camp, seventeen miles from Philadelphia, 
" nothing new has occurred in the army. Detachments, 
marches, and countermarches, without material results for 
either side — that is all. It should be mentioned, however, 
that the Enorlish have burned three of their men-of-war. 



LIFE or KALB. 133 

which had run aground in the Delaware. On the other 
hand the enemy's artillery have destroyed and laid open our 
Fort Mifflin, so that we were compelled to leave it. But we 
carried off the only piece of ordnance not disabled. 

" On the 17th of November I was directed by the com- 
mander-in-chief, with two other generals, to go to Jersey, 
and ascertain whether Red Bank could resist a hostile attack, 
or would have to be abandoned and destroyed at the ap- 
proach of the enemy. We were to consult the navy officers 
of the United States now cruising in the Delaware. They 
were unanimously of opinion that the superiority of the 
hostile artillery made a defence impossible. We found this 
confi]-med. Kot only are the defences of the fort so dilapi- 
dated that in a very few days the garrison must be destroyed 
or captured, but its location is so unfavorable that without 
the support of ships it cannot molest the enemy in the least. 
It would neither prevent him from constructing chevaux de 
frise in the channel, nor damage his frigates and transports. 
It was therefore resolved to mine the fortifications, and, if 
the troops stationed in the Jerseys should cross Mente Creek, 
and not be successfully repulsed, to evacuate the fort and 
blow it up. This has since been done under the direction 
of General Varnum. 

"Four days later, after my return to headquarters at 
Whitemarsh, General Washington ordered me to throw 
reenforcements into Jersey, General Howe having greatly 
increased his forces there of late. Our camp was threatened 
by this movement, on which account our troops were with- 
drawn from the left bank of the Delaware. By good fortune 
four brigades from the army of the North arrived just in 
time to make us a match K r the enemy. On the 3d of Decern- 



134 LIFE OF ^ALB. 

ber Howe approached and made sundry feints both to the 
right and to the left, in the hope of decoying us out of our 
strong position. He continued traversing the field for eight 
days, we also keeping in bivouac, but never quitting our 
ground. He did not venture to attack us; nor was it 
advisable for us to advance upon him and sacrifice the 
advantages of the ground. For, in other respects, the 
chances were by no means equal. Had the enemy been de- 
feated, he would have retreated in safety to Philadelphia ; 
had the fortune of the day turned against us, we should have 
risked the loss of our whole army, and the downfall of the 
cause. For you will hardly believe, M. le Comte, that the 
enemy still exceeds us in numbers, and that our army has at 
no time mustered fifteen thousand men. Howe has that 
force in effective men. I am certain that in spite of the 
reenforcements above mentioned, and in consequence of hard- 
ships, cold, and insufficient clothing, our army has been 
reduced until the men capable of performing duty are not 
more than seven thousand, while our hospitals are crowded. 
And how are the latter administered ! And in the face of 
all this the soldier is worried with parades — and such 
parades — three times longer than is necessary, and on march- 
ing days as well as others. This gives me as much regret 
as it fills me with disgust. However, I am on good terms 
with the commanding general. He has formed a division 
for me, consisting of two brigades, all New England troops, 
which are regarded as the best. 

" The English finally retired to Philadelphia, after ravag- 
ing the country and burning many houses. I had correctly 
divined their intention to retreat from the position assumed 
by them ; knowing, also, that their provisions were exhausted, 



LIFE OF KALB. 136 

their supplies cut off, and the surrounding country laid waste, 
I calculated upon defeating their rear, being well-acquainted 
with the ground, and knowing that the main body could not 
be brought into action against rae. Besides, it was already 
three o'clock in the afternoon, and my retreat perfectly 
secure. I requested the commander-in-chief to allow me to 
make a sally with a part of my division. He thanked me 
very kindly, but only permitted me, if I thought proper, to 
detach a little corps of observation, and desired any attack 
/ to be avoided. I therefore sent a little detachment of 
j infantry and cavalry after the English, directing Major 
Dubuysson to show them the way. They hung on the rear 
of the enemy for five miles, and by that gentleman's report 
to the commanding general it appeared that nothing would 
have been easier than, with four field-pieces, to have utterly 
defeated, and, indeed, cut off and captured a part of the rear 
guard, numbering some five hundred men, while passing 
a long defile. 

" On the 11th of December we broke camp, to take up a 
position on the right bank of the Schuylkill, six miles in 
advance. Two divisions of the right wing had already 
passed our pontoon bridge at Matson's Ford, when suddenly 
an intrenched camp was seen there, from which the enemy 
had assailed and cannonaded the militia marching in the 
front. The great distance made it impossible that General 
Howe should have been informed of our movements in time 
to have thrown his main body in our way. It was clear that 
this was only a strong detachment, which had ventured out 
in search of provisions. Instead, howeve ■, of falling upon 
the enemy and engaging him, or making a detour, General 
Sullivan, who commanded our right wing, retreated across 



136 LIFE OF JxALB. 

the bridge, and ordered it to be taken down, abandoning tlio 
militia to their fate. Thus we remained on the left bank, 
at Swedes Ford, three miles above, where we constructed a 
new bridge, no better than the old one. Before the day was 
over we learned that the hostile corps numbered but two 
thousand men, and made off in the utmost haste. 

" On the 14th," continues Kalb in a postscript written in 
camp at Gulph's Mill, December 17, 1777, "'we crossed the 
river by two fords and two bridges, and pitched this camp. 
Yesterday we were detained by the weather, and to-day by 
the fast proclaimed by Congress. 

" Warfare in this country is toilsome and difficult, and 
the season is too far advanced for us to remain in the field. 
Nevertheless we do remain. Although we expect to go into 
winter-quarters the day after to-morrow, we must expect a 
winter campaign, as the enemy gives us little rest, and his 
main position is only twenty or twenty-two miles away. 
The miserable hovels we are constructing in these dreary 
mountains are, therefore, very far from deserving the honor- 
able designation of winter-quarters. Houses are not to be 
had, even for generals. I shall personally superintend the 
erection of my castle, in order to have it as little badly 
built as possible. But be that as it may. Valley Forge is to 
be our winter retreat, if that name can be applied to so ill- 
defended a camp so near to the enemy. Repose will cer- 
tainly not be our portion, as the number of those fit for duty 
is very small, in consequence of the great number of sick 
and of discharges. I am the officer of the day every fourth 
day. Twenty-four such hours afford employment sufficient 
for two men ; and even in my brief leisure hours T hardly 
have a moment to myself, being then obliged to look after 



LIFE OF KALB. 137 

my division, and to attend the various consultations and 
councils of war. 

" On the 19th instant," Kalb concludes his report to 
de Broglie at Valley Forge, on the 25th of December, " the 
army reached this wooded wilderness, certainly one of the 
poorest districts of Pennsylvania ; the soil thin, unculti- 
vated, and almost uninhabited, without forage and without 
provisions ! Here we are to go into winter-quarters, i. e., 
to lie in shanties, generals and privates, to enable the army, 
it is said, to recover from its privations, to recruit, to re- 
equip, and to prepare for the opening of the coming cam- 
paign, while protecting the country against hostile inroads. 
The matter has been the subject of long debates in the coun- 
cil of war. It was discussed in all its length and breadth — 
a bad practice to which they are addicted here — and good 
advice was not taken. The idea of wintering in this desert 
can only have been put into the head of the commanding 
general by an interested speculator, or a disaffected man. 
Means were found of implicating Congress, which body has 
the foible of interfering with matters which it neither un- 
derstands nor can understand, being entirely ignorant of 
the locality. It is unfortunate that Washington is so easily 
led. He is the bravest and truest of men, has the best in- 
tentions, and a sound judgment. I am convinced that he 
would accomplish substantial results, if he would only act 
more upon his own responsibility ; but it is a pity that he is 
so weak, and has the worst of advisers in the men who enjoy 
his confidence. If they are not traitors, they are certainly 
gross ignoramuses. I am satisfied that our present position, 
if retained, will ofier none of the advantages expected from 
it. On the contrary, the army will be kept in continual 



138 LIFE OF :^ALB. 

alarms from being too near the enemy, and too feeble, for our 
whole effective force hardly amounts to six thousand men. 
To use them for the protection of the country, excludes 
every idea of rest. It might have been expected that a 
camp would have been formed in a secure position, and com- 
pact in its design, corresponding to the small number of the 
army ; and that it would have been strongly intrenched, so 
as to resist any attack. Instead of this the divisions are 
encamped so far asunder, that we are practically split up 
into a number of petty detachments, isolated so as to be 
unable to support each other, and helplessly exposed to 
every assault. Who knows whether we shall not receive a 
severe blow this winter ? When the enemy go foraging, we 
remain quiet in camp. If we were properly informed of 
their movements, we might intercept their foraging parties. 
But in most cases we never hear a word about them. A fine 
management for recuperating and making the army effect- 
ive ! And if recruiting is to be attempted, the effective 
force must be still further reduced, by detailing officers and 
men for that purpose. If this is done sparingly, but few 
recruits will be obtained, and the army will go out of the 
winter-quarters as puny as it went in. Unless Congress will j 
speedily throw off their present vacillation, and adopt ener- 
getic measures for completing the regiments and compelling 
the militia to serve for three years (a step I have been daily 
advocating for a long time), a time will come when the 
General will not be able to calculate upon having twenty 
men to command next morning. The men are drafted in 
classes, and are only called upon to pledge themselves for a 
service of two months. After the expiration of that time 
no man can compel them to remain another clay. This state 



LIFE OF KALB. 139 

of things is a burthen to the State and to the citizen ; there 
is no end to the drilling of raw recruits, from which the 
service derives no manner of benefit. This system of militia -^ 
service will yet prove the destruction of the cause. The 
devil himself could not have made a worse arrangement. ^ 
On the regular troops it entails a further disadvantage. The 
moneyed militiaman — and the majority are of this descrip- ) 
tion — does not march himself, but hires a substitute, whom 
he pays from $200 to $1,000 for two months' service. These 
gentry are well content to pocket this amount of money for 
an eight weeks' promenade, and take good care not to enlist 
permanently — the very thing which the greater part of them 
would do if the militia service was abolished, or the militia 
only employed to fill up the old regiments. You may im- 
agine the difficulty of recruiting und«r these circumstances. 
I do not know what is done in the clothing department ; but 
it is certain that half the army are half naked, and almost 
the whole army go barefoot. As to patrolling the country 
round, it is not even carried so far as to keep the road from 
Lancaster to Erie, and from Erie to the Delaware, in our 
control. A number of officers have joined me in urging this 
measure. But it was objected that by so doing we should 
expose the banks of the Delaware, the eastern part of Mary- 
land, and several counties of Pennsylvania. But do we not 
expose them now, and all the more ? The whole difierence 
would be that such a disposition would enable us to live on 
what now constitute the supplies of the enemy. 

" Our men are also infected with the itch, a matter which 
attracts very little attention either at the hospitals or in 
camp. I have seen the poor fellows covered over and over 
with scab. I have caused my seven regiments to put up 



140 LIFE aF K A L B . 

barracks large enough to hold all these unfortunates, so that 
they can be subjected to medical treatment away from the 
others. 

"All things seem to contribute to the ruin of our cause. 
If it is sustained, it can only be by a special interposition of 
Providence. The army contractors have been consulted as 
to the best place for going into winter-quarters, and have 
declared that the present location is the most convenient for 
them. This, by-the-bye, was done contrary to my advice. 
Now we have hardly been here six days, and are already 
suffering for want of everything. The men have had 
neither meat nor bread for four days, and our horses are 
often left for days without any fodder. What will be done 
when the roads grow worse, and the season more severe? 
Strong detacliments ought to be sent out at once, to get in 
provisions. And what rest is given to the soldier? The 
generals never think of sparing their men. They take the 
full complement of guards to which their rank entitles them. 
The general of the highest grade has a lieutenant with thirty 
men, the brigadier a sergeant with twelve men to watch 
him, and the remaining staff officers in proportion. To set a 
good example, I have taken it upon myself to reduce the 
number in my division. This has been much commended 
but by no means imitated. Imitation is not in vogue here. 

" In addition to this there is here a series of officers very 
expensive and totally superfluous. Every brigade has its 
commissary of subsistence, its quartermaster, its wagon- 
master, its commissary of forage, and each of these again 
has his deputies. Each g,eneral, again, is entitled to a special 
commissary of subsistence and three commissaries of forage. 
All these men rank as officers, and really have nothing to do. 



I 



LIFE OF KALB. 141 

My blacksmith is a captain ! The very numerous assistant- 
quartermasters are for the most part men of no military edu- 
cation whatever, in many cases ordinary hucksters, but al- 
ways colonels. The same rank is held by the contractors- 
general and their agents (fournisseur general et facteur gin- 
erat). It is safe to accost every man as a colonel who talks 
to me with familiarity; the officers of a lower grade are in- \ 
variably more modest. In a word, the army teems with | 
colonels. The quartermasters-general provide quarters for 
the commander-in-chief and for themselves, but for nobody 
else. The other generals, even some of the officers, take 
their quarters where and as they please and can. -For this 
purpose thousands are often to be seen hastening on in ad- 
vance of the army. In the rear of it nobody thinks of the 
distance. Luckily we have an enemy to deal with as clumsy 
as ourselves. If any one you have occasion to look for is to 
be found, it is only to be accomplished by good luck or inde- 
fatigable perambulations. Plans of quarters are unknown. 
It is necessary to live a long time in every camp, before you 
can find your way. All my remonstrances against this 
abuse were of no avail. I have abandoned the practice of 
suggesting improvements in the service and in organization. 
I have had the greatest trouble in making them understand 
the necessity of strong patrols for visiting the posts. They 
had no idea of a system of pickets and outposts. Detach- 
ments of dragoons were usually employed, who of course 
knew nothing about it. Thus it happened that posts were 
often missed for days, and were not relieved, from ignorance 
of their locality, and that the officers, in visiting the posts, 
were always groping in the dark. The party who had 
posted them, on arriving in camp, could only tell approxi- 



142 LIFEOtfKALB. 

raately where they stood. The other day, when I was re- 
lieved from being officer of the day, my successor inquired 
whether I had held a parade. I answered that I should 
never unnecessarily increase the troubles of the soldiers, nor 
keep them under arras to no purpose. For it has been very 
cold for a month, and the assembly as well as the mounting 
of the guard is done so slowly, that it generally consumes 
two hours. My comrade replied that he had ordered up all 
the drummers, and meant to have a grand parade. 

*' But I must tell you, M. le Comte, how a grand parade 
is managed. When the troops are drawn up in order, the 
officers of the guard and those commanding the pickets post 
themselves opposite the line on horseback. The drummers 
then march solemnly down the front from right to left, and 
back again from left to right, beating their drums all the 
time. Then they make a wide detour, and repeat the per- 
formance in the rear of the troops, until they halt on the right 
of tlie line. At this moment the command to march is given, 
and the troops pass in review before the officers. You must 
vmderstand that the whole parade, headed by the general, 
makes a circuit around the little cluster of horsemen, and 
then, before setting out to mount guard, range themselves 
again on the ground from which they started, a march which 
occupies at least three-quarters of an hour. How sad, that 
troops of such excellence, and so much zeal, should be so 
little spared and so badly led ! But everything here com- 
bines to inspire disgust. At the smallest sign from you I 
shall return home. 

"I have never mentioned the subject of my pay, because 
I know nothing about it. I have not received anythhig. I 
cannot say whether it amounts to a hundred and fifty or to 



LIFEOFKALB. 143 

two hundred dollars a month, or more, bat it ought to run 
from last July. The sum looks large, but horses are exces- 
sively dear at this place, and all necessaries so much above 
the ordinary price, that the best I can hope for will be to 
escape a loss. I am the only general who practises economy, 
and restricts his table to what is most needed. Neverthe- 
less, at the last camp I had to pay my purveyor of milk and 
butter two hundred and forty-two francs for the consumption 
of two weeks. Besides, the pay is made in paper money, on 
which there is a loss of four hundred per cent, in exchanging 
it for silver. No one, therefore, ought to serve from interested 
motives. On the other hand, the expenditures for provisions 
and other necessaries for the army must be enormous. I 
draw forage for two four-horse baggage wagons, besides 
which three horses, raised in the country, ha/e been furnished 
for my servants. I receive twenty-four daily rations or 
thirty-six pounds of meat, twenty-four pounds of bread or 
flour, a considerable quantity of rum, candles, bacon, salt, 
soap, etc. The storehouses are well filled, and we are at 
liberty to take from them what we please. The war fund 
pays a good many bills that could not well be made public. 
I have no doubt that the contractors make fifty per cent, on 
every contract, not to speak of the other defraudations, the 
mere enumeration of which would be endless." 

As a finishing touch to this very unattractive picture of 
American camp life, we subjoin Kalb's remarks, in his regu- 
lar correspondence with his wife, about his own compatriots 
and late friends and companions. " On the whole," he writes 
on the 5th of January, 1778, *'I have annoyances to bear, of 
which you can hardly form a conception. One of them is the 
mutual jealousy of almost all the French officers, particularly 



144 LIFE OF»KALB. 

against those of higher rank than the rest. The people think 
of nothing but their incessant intrigues and backbitings. 
They hate each other like the bitterest enemies, and endeav- 
or to injure each other wherever an opportunity offers. I 
liave given up their society, and very seldom see them. La- 
fayette is the sole exception ; I always meet him with the 
same cordiality and the same pleasure. He is an excellent 
young man, and we are good friends. It were to be wished 
tliat all the Frenchmen who serve here were as reasonable as 
he and I. Lafayette is much liked ; he is on the best of 
terms with Washington ; both of them have every reason to 
be satisfied with me also." 

Another letter, written January V, 1778, at Valley 
Forge, to President Henry Laurens,^® shows a better insight 
into Washington's difficult position. '• What can I say," 
Kalb writes, " about our doings, or rather doing nothing 
during the fall ? Have we ever been able to undertake any- 
thing against the enemy ? Have we not been lying often 
in the open field, without tents, under arms for many hours 
together, and in very severe weather, too ; with an army al- 
most naked and barefoot, worn out by fatigue (partly by 
necessity and the ordinary hardships of the field, but as 
much so, I dare say, by the ignorance of some of the leading 
officers, in keeping the men under arms longer than would 
be required), and constantly inferior to the enemy in num- 
ber, even after the reenforcement from the ISTorthern army. 
To whose door this defect of numbers must be laid I am at 
a loss to tell, being unacquainted with the methods employed 
or prescribed for recruiting ; 'tis most improbable that the 
commander can be faulty in this point, it being always a 
general's interest to have a strong army. He has, no doubt, 



LIFE OF KALB. 145 

regularly given to Congress exact returns, to show them 
his weakness. I cannot but observe, in justice to General 
Washington, that he must be a very modest man, and the 
greatest friend to the cause, for forbearing public com- 
plaints on that account, that the enemy may not be apprised 
of our situation and take advantage of it. He will rather 
suffer in the opinion of the world than hurt his country, in 
making appear how far he is from having so considerable an 
army as all Europe and great part of America believe he 
has. This would show, at the sanie time, he did and does 
more every day than (sould be expected from any general in 
the world, in the same circumstances, and that I think him 
the only proper person (nobody actually being or serving in 
America excepted), by his natural and acquired capacity, his 
bravery, good sense, uprightness and honesty, to keep up 
the spirits of the army and people, and that I looli upon him 
as the sole defender of his country's cause. Thus much I 
thought myself obliged to say on that head. I only could 
wish in my private opinion he would take more upon him- 
self, and trust more to his own excellent judgment than to 
councils, but this leads me out of my way." * 

Under these circumstances Kalb was little pleased with 
his new sphere of action, and felt himself ill at ease in Val- 
ley Forge. Almost every letter to his wife winds up with 
the expression of a wish, or with a definite plan for his im- 
mediate return home. At one moment a threatened Euro- 
pean collision, which subsequently collapsed into the war of 
th3 Bavarian succession, fills him with a desire of returning 
to the well-tried flaor of de Brosrlie, to seek on the battle- 
fields of Germany the distinction which seemed to elude bis 
* Copied verbatim. 



146 LIFE OF'KALB. 

grasp in America ; at another time he would like to be ac- 
credited as envoy from France to Congress, or if that 
vacancy should be already filled, to go in the same capacity 
to Geneva, where his religious confession would not be a 
hindrance to him ; again he paints in the most vivid colors 
the delights of an idyllic retirement in the bosom of his 
family ; finally, he postpones his departure. Amid these 
hopes and longings day after day goes by, until at length he 
abandons his plan, being absorbed in the claims of the passinsf 
moment. 



CHAPTEK YIII. 

Sentiments op the American General at Valley Forge. — Intrigues 
AGAINST Washington.— tGates and Conway, the Conway Cabal. — Win- 
ter Campaign to Canada. — Eeasons Therkfor. — Lafayette Selected 
for the Command in Chief. — He Demands and Receives Kalb as a 
Colleague. — Plan of the Expedition. — Kalb Goes to Albany. — Want 
of Preparations of all Kinds. — Kalb Advises an Immediate Return. 
— His Disagreeable Conflicts with Conway. — The Complaints and 
Falsehoods of the Latter. — Letter of Robert Troup. — Acrimony of 
THE Clique. — Lafayette's Letter to Washington. — Kalb Returns to 
Headquarters. — Celebration in Honor of the French Alliance. — 
Kalb's Joy. — Description of the Festivities. — Council of War. — 
Swearing the Troops. — Kalb Swears the Oath of Fidelity, and, 
for the present, Renounces the Idea of Returning. — Falls Danger- 
ously III. — After his Rkcovery, he Goes to Headquarters at White 
Plains. — Projected Attempt upon New York. — Kalb Rkckons upon 
THE Evacuation of the Country by the English. — His Camp at Fish- 
kill. — Inactivity during the Summer of 1*778. — Kalb's Longing for 
Home.— Parting with Lafayette.— Kalb Consults with Washington 
Relative to the Plan for Winter-quarters. — Hardships and Pri- 
vations. — Visit at West Point. — Camp at Middlebrook. — Sufferings 
Incident to the Stay there. — Inordinate Prices of Provisions. — 
Absence of a Fraternal Spirit Among the Officers, especially the 
French. — Kalb's Visit at Philadelphia. — Return to Camp. — Kalb 
Desires to Become the French Envoy to the United States. — Letter 
from the Comte de Broglie to Kalb.— The Latter Advances to the 
Hudson with his Division the 2d of June, 17*79.— Washington's In- 
tentions. 

AT the time of which we are now speaking the Ameri- 
can generals and statesmen were by no means united 
in that spirit of cordial harmony and patriotic devotion to 
the welfare of an imperilled country, which, in consequence 



148 LIFE OP, KALB. 

of distortions, intended or unintentional, of the truth of his 
tory, is so frequently ascribed to them. The American army 
formed no exception to the universal rule governing all 
newly-raised levies of this description ; it had its full share 
of that petty envy, those fierce dissensions and jealousies, 
those intrigues and cliques, which inevitably grow out of the 
friction of heterogeneous interests and the clash of ambitious 
aspirations. History, of course, takes note only of the dis- 
cords which invaded the higher circles, and here again the 
the commander-in-chief was naturally the object of the most 
violent and vindictive assaults. 

To arrive at a correct estimate of these transactions it 
must be borne in mind that, at Valley Forge, Washington's 
reputation, however quickly it has since established itself, 
was by no means such as to point to him as the only and 
indispensable man for the times. In the first place, the re- 
sult of the last battles was unfavorable, and the result is the 
criterion for the unthinking masses ; again, some errors in 
strategy had been undoubtedly committed, and were, of 
course, exaggerated by his opponents into proofs of inca- 
pacity. Some, like Lee, Gates, and Conway, saw in him a 
stumbling-block in the path of their own ambition ; others, 
like Lovell and Adams, thought him too slow, and still others 
saw inevitable ruin in the course of things under his direc- 
tion. His adversaries numbered in their ranks patriots and 
men of the purest and niost disinterested intentions ; but the 
ringleaders of the period now engaging our attention were 
actuated by sinister motive], and the chief among them were 
Gates and Conway. The former was fairly intoxicated with 
the splendor of his victory over Burgoyne, largely brought 
about, as it had been, by the previous dispositions of Wash- 



LIFE OF KALB. 149 

ington and Schuyler, and occupied, even in the eyes of a 
strong party in Congress, the position of the expected deliv- 
erer from bondage. The latter, a born intrigue]-, felt that 
Washington understood him well, and therefore hoped to 
make his way by clinging to the skirts of Gates. As we 
have already seen, he managed to obtain the rank of major- 
general, and the post of inspector-general of the array, in 
December, 1777, in the teeth of Washington's well-founded 
objections. 

The object of the cabal which is known by Conway's 
name was none other than to undermine Washington's repu- 
tation with the army and in Congress, and to supplant him in 
the command by General Gates. The latter had just re- 
ceived from Congress the position of President of the Board 
of War, which gave him the supreme direction of military 
affairs. The cabal, the earliest symptoms of which have been 
traced as far back as November, 1777, matured in the camp 
at Valley Forge, but was defeated, in January, 1778, by the 
indiscretion of Colonel Wilkinson and the tact and dignity 
of Washington. Since then. Gates contented himself with 
opposing Washington indirectly whenever he could. Thus, 
at the end of January, 1778, he induced Congress, without 
communicating with the commander-in-chief or asking his 
opinion, to decide upon a winter campaign into Canada, under 
the lead of Lafayette and Conway. The plan was well con- 
ceived. In view of the nationality of the Canadians, and of 
their natural relations to France, the success of the American 
arms was far more probable under the direction of those who 
were Frenchmen by birth and French officers by education, 
than under the management of Americans, unacquainted even 
with the language of the country. But under this smooth 



150 LIFE OF, KALE. 

exterior lurked the design of gaining over Lafayette, and 
with him, if possible, all the French officers, to the interests 
of Gates and Conway. The young marquis could not have 
been more effectually conciliated. Vain and greedy of ap- 
plause, he longed for an opportunity of distinction. The 
expedition to Canada, invested with a certain romantic halo 
from the adventurous march of Arnold and the heroic death 
of Montgomery, two years before, promised a more than 
ordinary crop of honors. He was especially delighted at 
the idea of expelling the tyrannical and natural enemies 
of his country, " the Enghsh, out of the lands they have 
taken from us (the French), and of imparting to the Cana- 
dians a share of the liberties of the thirteen States. How 
happy I would be," Lafayette continues, " had I the satisfac- 
tion of hieing an instrument of such a revolution. My love 
for the freedom of mankind in general, and, in this particular 
instance, my consanguinity with the Canadians and the name 
of Frenchman I am honored with, will be sufficient proofs. 
If I had believed that I am not sent for doing good and right 
to the Canadians, then I should not have hesitated an instant 
to decline this commission ; but as I am fully convinced that 
I would promote their happiness as well as the advantage 
of the United States, I shall undertake it with the greatest 
cheerfulness, if those measures are taken which I think 
proper to succeed." " Nevertheless he marred the plot of 
the clique, as a man of a high sense of honor, and of a devo- 
tion to Washington far greater than the adversaries of the 
latter had imagined. It was only upon consultation with, 
and under the sanction of, the commander-in-chief, that La- 
fayette accepted the command, and then on the express con- 
ditions that Kalb, and not Conway, should be his associate. 



LIFE OF KALB. 151 

"I had desired McDougall," Lafayette continues in hia 
above-quoted letter of January 31, 1778, to Congress;* "not 
that I am very intimately acquainted with him, but by the 
knowledge I have of his rigid and imperturbable virtue. The 
state of his health would not permit his going now in so 
cold a country. But there is the Baron de Kalb, who has 
seen more wars than any other officer in the continent, who 
came over with me, wiio, if I was to point out any of the 
general officers w^ho are to be in that expedition, had an in- 
dubitable right to my mentioning his name. He desires to 
come with me ; he will be much more useful to America if he 
is employed there. I take the liberty of recommending him 
in the most strongest terms, not at all because there where 
are more than two brigadiers — it seems there should be two 
major-generals — but because I think very firmly that, for the 
good of the service and the success of the enterprise, it is of 
the highest importance and of an absolute necessity." Con- 
gress yielded this point, so that Conway, being junior to 
Kalb, was indirectly shelved. 

According to the plan marked out by Gates himself," 
the expedition was to consist of 2,500 men, to rendezvous at 
Bennington, and to march over the ice of Lake Champlain, 
upon St. Johns and Montreal. Arriving at one of these points, 
Lafayette was directed to acquaint the Canadians with his in- 
tentions, and to invite them to enter the Union army. In 
case public sentiment should not manifest itself unequivocally 
in favor of the Union, Lafayette was to call upon the people 
of Canada to observe a strict neutrality. If, however, he 
should encounter an unexpected resistance, or general disaf- 
fection, he was to destroy all the wharves and vessels at St. 
* Literal copy. 



152 LIFE OF'KALB. 

Johns, Chamblee, and the Isle aux Noix, and to retreat by the 
most available route to Saratoga and the advanced ports on 
Wood Creek and Hudson River. But in case the Canadians 
should be filled with a desire to assist at the establishment of 
American liberty and independence, it would become Lafay- 
ette's especial duty, not only to solicit their adherence to the 
United States, and to send delegates to Congress, but also to 
call upon him to accept the paper money issued by him. If 
he should penetrate to Montreal, the capture of which was 
the main purpose of the expedition, he was to possess himself 
of all the arms and munitions of war. Lafayette quitted the 
camp on the 7th of February, 1778, followed by Kalb on the 
16th of the same month. His route lay through Pennsylva- 
nia and New York over ice and snow, or impassable roads, 
over which he travelled alternately on horseback or by sleigh, 
so that it was not before the 24th of the month that he reached 
Albany. Here Kalb was rewarded for the hardships of 
the journey by excellent quarters. Little as he usually heed- 
ed such matters, he yet records with great satisfaction on this 
occasion, that in Albany he slept without his clothes, for the 
first time since the 14th of October, the day of his arrival in 
camp. 

It was but too soon apparent that the entire expedition 
had been inaugurated without a proper calculation of the re- 
sources at command. Conway, who, at the instigation of his 
friend Gates, reached Albany even before Lafayette, and was 
to hand him his instructions, had scarcely arrived before he 
declared the march to Canada an impossibility. Generals 
Schuyler, Lincoln, and Arnold, well acquainted with the coun- 
try, and with the spirit of their own people as well as with 
that of the Canadians, were of the same opinion ; and if Lafay- 



LIFE OF KALB. 158 

ette at first clung fondly to the hope of overcoming all ob- 
stacles, Kalb had been on the spot but a few days, when he 
was convinced of the impracticability of the undertaking. In- 
stead of the 2,500 men which had been promised, they found, 
at Albany, Schenectady, Johnston, and the neighboring towns, 
scarcely 1,200 soldiers, suffering for want of indispensable 
necessaries, and insufficiently clothed and equipped even for a 
summer campaign. General Stark, who, as Gates had boast- 
ed, would probably have burned the English flotilla even 
before Lafayette's arrival, had not a single man under his 
orders, and began by asking Lafayette how many troops he 
wanted, and for what period he wished them to be raised.®" 
There was on all hands a lack of money, supplies, men, and 
even good will, so that with the utmost exertions of Kalb and 
Lafayette too much time indispensably needed for the march 
itself would have been consumed in preparation. 

Under these circumstances Kalb advocated an immediate 
return to camp ; but the month of March passed away before 
he and Lafayette could set out on their journey. Besides the 
considerations which grew out of the merits of the case, Kalb 
had personal reasons for disliking the enterpi-ise. His posi- 
tion, in consequence of the course pursued by Conway, was 
extremely disagreeable. The latter reiterated his former 
grievances, complained of being placed under the orders of one 
who had been his subordinate in France, and asked to be re- 
called, or transferred to Rhode Island. We have seen above 
what was the true state of the case in reference to his alleged 
seniority in the French army. But what especially stamps 
Conway's remonstrances as emanations of mere personal in- 
trigue or mortification, is the circumstance that he had no ob- 
jections to make to Lafayette's command-in chief, though 
7* 



154 LIFE OF *KALB. 

that nobleman had been but a lieutenant in France, and there- 
fore a great deal further beneath him in dignity. The true 
motive must lie beneath the surface. Lafayette was not to be 
assailed, because Gates himself desired, by so flattering an ex- 
pression of confidence as was involved in giving him the chief 
command, to draw him over to his side, and then, through 
Conway's influence, to attach him to the interests of the 
clique. But by making Kalb the adviser of Lafayette and 
the virtual military director of the enterprise, to which the 
marquis merely lent his name, all the brilliant projects of the 
conspirators for the seduction of the foreign officers were 
dispelled. This circumstance explains the bitterness which 
runs through the letters of Conway and his friends. 
- " I hear that General Kalb," writes Conway to Gates, 
from Albany, February 24, 1778,®^ "is coming to this place; 
he is my inferior in France, and it would be disagreeable for 
me to find myself under his orders ; besides I do not think that 
there is any occasion for three major-generals to command 
the few troops in this quarter. I wish you would let me know 
the intentions of Congress concerning me, whether I am to 
serve here or with General Putnam or on Rhode Island. 

" General de Kalb," Conway continues on February 25, 
"is just now arrived. I am sure he was not sent by you, 
but by Marquis de Lafayette. I could understand that he 
was induced to call for Baron de Kalb because the people 
whom you guess and whom I do not choose to blame, ex- 
pected that Baron de Kalb's arrival here would give me a 
disgust. In this they have guessed very right ; however, I 
solemnly declare that I am ready to serve this cause to which 
I have devoted myself in any part of the continent where I 
will be thought useful." 



LIFE OF KALB. 155 

While Conway confines himself to covert allusions, Rob- 
ert Troup, his friend, and Gates' aid, is far more explicit. 
" General Conway," writes Troup to his general, " is sorry that 
Baron de Kalb has been thought of for reasons, I dare say, 
you are acquainted with. The baron was of inferior rank to 
him in France, and he would injure himself in the eye of that 
nation if he were to serve under him in America. I confess 
this reason has much weight with me, and I am convinced 
you will not deem it improper. 

"But what is of more consequence, is the service General 
Conway has rendered this country since his arrival in Amer- 
ica. I will forbear repeating the many parts of his history 
which stamp his character as a man of military abilities, 
valor, and attachment to the States. What can we say of 
Baron Kalb ? He never distinguished himself in any action with 
our army. He has never proved himself, in my opinion, a man of 
extraordinary talents. Why, then, should he be preferred to 
Conway? 

" I only suggest these hints to show you the impropriety of 
sending Kalb to the northward. I am convinced General 
Conway will never be commanded by him, and a dispute in 
Canada, about rank, would be attended, in all probability, 
w^ith insuperable difficulties. 

" I wish, therefore, some mode could be adopted to prevent 
the mutiny of these two gentlemen. I would rather lose a 
dozen Kalbs than one Conway. You may rest assured that I 
shall endeavor to promote friendship and good understand- 
ing between the several officers who are to be employed in 
this expedition. 

" Upon my arrival in Albany I shall speak to the quarter- 
master and commissary, and spur them on in the execution 
of their dutv. 



156 LIFE OF kALB. 

" General Conway believes that the cabal at headquarters 
want the marquis to take Kalb in order to prevent his doing 
anything that won't contribute to his own honor or the in- 
terest of the States." 

It is interesting to see that the clique of Gates and Con- 
way, judging the commander-in-chief by their own base stand- 
ard, took for granted that Washington and his friends were 
engaged in a cabal which really had no existence ; as matters 
stood, however, it is certainly fortunate that the march to 
Canada was not attempted, because even the slighest bicker- 
ings brought on by Conway, would have been attended by 
the most disastrous consequences. Congress themselves 
were at length convinced that the plan was not feasible, and 
renounced it by a formal resolution, directing Washington to 
recall Kalb and Lafayette to headquarters, as their presence 
was indispensably required there. 

" How happy I have been," writes Lafayette from Albany, 
March 25, 1V78, to Washington, "in receiving your Excellen- 
cy's favor of the 10th present. I hope you will be convinced 
by the knowledge of my tender affection for you. I am very 
sensible of that goodness which tries to dissipate my fears 
about that ridiculous Canadian expedition. At the present 
time we know which was the aim of the honorable Board, 
and for which project three or four men have rushed the 
country into a great expense, and risked the reputation of our 
army, and the loss of many hundred men, had the genera], 
your deceived friend, been as rash and foolish as they seem 
to have expected. O American freedom ! what shall become 
of you if you are in such handS ? 

" I have received a letter from the Board, and a resolve of 
Congress, by which you are directed to recall me and the 



LIFE OF KALB. 157 

Baron de Kalb, whose presence is deemed absolutely necessary 
to your army. I believe that of General Conway is absolutely 
necessary to Albany, and he has received orders to stay there, 
which I have no objection to, as nothing perhaps will be done 
in this quarter but some disputes of Indians and Tories. 
However, you know, I have wrote to Congress, and as soon 
as this leave will come, I shall let Conway have the command 
of these few regiments, and I shall immediately join my re- 
spectable friend ; but till I have received instructions for 
leaving this place from yourself, I shall stay, as powerful 
commander-in-chief, as if Congress had never resolved my pres- 
ence absolutely necessary for the great army." 

Washington's directions, to the same effect, anticipated 
Lafayette's despatch, and reached Albany the day after the 
departure of the latter. Lafayette and Kalb immediately 
set out on their return. The latter left the 29th of March, 
rode down the Hudson to New Windsor, and then struck a 
westward course through the States of New York and Penn- 
sylvania, to Lancaster, where he arrived early in April, and 
enjoyed some weeks of repose before returning to the army 
at Valley Forge. 

His return to headquarters was immediately followed by 
news of the defensive and offensive alliance concluded be- 
tween France and the United States, on the 6th of February, 
1778. 

The commander-in-chief assigned the 6th of May for the 
solemn celebration of an event so important and so joyful to 
this country. In consequence of Steuben's unwearied labors 
the army was able to execute a grand manoeuvre, on which 
occasion it was commanded by Kalb in the centre, while 
Lord Stirling led the right and Lafayette the left wing.'* 



168 LIFE OF aALB. 

But let us hear Kalb's own account of the day's festivities, 
and of the events thereby commemorated. 

*'The alliance," he writes to his wife on the 12th of May 
1778, "is, on the part of the King of France, so rational, 
and so generous beyond all expectation, that it has won him 
the hearts even of those who loved him but little before. 
At the same time, it may be said that this act of magnanim- 
ity is none the less a movement of the most subtle policy, 
which, quite apart from the glory reflected upon the king 
and his ministers, will prove of infinite commercial advan- 
tage to the French people. No means could have been better 
adapted to bruise the colossal power of England, and to 
snatch this great country forever from its allegiance. The 
treaty reflects the highest credit on M. Gerard, who was in- 
trusted with its negotiation. His name will be inscribed 
upon the annals of this new empire by the side of Louis 
XVI., as the interpreter of the high-hearted sentiments of 
that noble monarch, to whom this immense continent owes 
its liberty and happiness. 

" The solemnities \vere opened with divine worship at the 
head of each brigade. Then followed three volleys of artil- 
lery, each of thirteen guns, and each succeeded by a round 
of cheers, of which the first was in honor of the King of 
France, the second in honor of the European powers friendly 
to America, and the third in honor of the United States. 
The commander-in-chiel gave a grand banquet in the camp. 
Fifteen hundred persons sat down to the tables, which w^ere 
spread in the open air. All the officers with their ladies, an 1 
the prominent people of the neighborhood, were invited. 
Wine, meats, and liquors abounded, and happiness and con- 
tentment were impressed on every countenance. Numbei- 



LIFE OF KALB, 159 

less hurrahs were given for the King of France, and the 
French officers had no small share in the honors of tlie occa- 
sion. It was a fine day for us, and a great one for General 
Washington. Let me say that no one could be more worthy 
of this good fortune. His integrity, humanity, and love for 
the just cause of his country, as well as his other virtues, 
receive and merit the veneration of all men. A French sol- 
dier had been condemned to death by a court-martial just 
before the festival. The marquis and I sued for pardon to 
the guilty. The commanding general answered that on a 
day dedicated to the gratitude owing by America to the 
King of France, he could not refuse French officers a boon, 
and availed himself of the opportunity to pardon all other 
criminals at the same time." 

The French alliance was a stimulus to the spirit of the 
soldiers no less than to that of the officers. In consequence 
of it a council of war, convened on the 8th of May, 1778, 
was attended by Generals Greene, Gates, Lord Stirling, ^ 
Mifflin, Lafayette, Steuben, Armstrong, and Kalb. It was 
called upon by the commander-in-chief to decide the ques- 
tion ^' what measures ought to be adopted, and, particularly, 
whether a movement on Philadelphia was then advisable? 
As'the objections and obstacles which had weighed in oppo- 
sition to offensive operations the preceding November, were 
still in full force, it was unanimously resolved to await the 
further development of events, which, in effect, induced the 
English to evacuate Philadelphia of their own accord a few 
weeks after. 

Until that time the American troops remained quiet in 
their camp at Valley Forge. The independence of the 
United States being now assured by the French alliance, the 



,^QA/^>\jriXoLOl a- 



160 LIFEOFKALB. 

oath of allegiance was once more exacted, and was admin- 
istered by Kalb to the brigadiers Glover and Larned. He 
was himself sworn on the 12th of May, 1*778 ; ^^ a proof that 
at that time he had renounced all idea of a speedy return to 
France. 

Such was the fact. " But for the late treaty," he writes 
to his wife on the 25th of May, 1778, "I should have re- 
turned to you ere this. Now I cannot and will not do it for 
various reasons, two of which I shall here specify. In the 
first place, war between England and France having become 
inevitable, should I fall into the hands of the English while 
at sea, my treatment would be that of a French prisoner of 
war, possibly without a claim to being exchanged, inasmuch 
as I should have left America without authority from my 
own Government. In the second place, the alliance with the 
United States retransforms me from an officer on two years* 
/ furlough into a general of the French army with the same, 
if not a better title to promotion than if I had never quitted 
France. Henceforward, therefore, I shall only return by the 
express command of the minister." 

In the succeeding events of the war, the evacuation of the 
camp at Valley Foi-go, the entry of the American army into 
Philadelphia, and Washington's march through New Jersey, 
Kalb did not participate, as he was seized, in the beginning 
of May, with a violent fever, which brought him to the verge 
of the grave, and confined him to his room until the middle 
of July. The latter stages of the disease were passed at 
Philadelphia, which the English had by this time evacuated, 
and where a fellow-German,* Dr. Phyle (Pfeil), who subse- 
quently became his intimate friend, tenderly nursed and cared 
for him. After his recovery Kalb went to the headquarters 



LIFE OF KALB. IGl 

at White Plains, twenty-five miles north of New York City, 
and resumed the command of his division. It was Washmo-- 
ton's intention to shut in the English in Kew York on the 
land side, while the French fleet under d'Estaing, which had 
just arrived, was to attack this important base of the hostile 
operations from the rear, and, by the combined operation 
of the two forces, to oblige the English army to surrender. 
The plan remained unexecuted, however, because the pilots 
gave it as their opinion that the depth of water in New York 
Bay was not sufficient to allow the larger vessels of the 
French squadron to manceuvre against an enemy. D'Es- 
taing therefore, in pursuance of an understanding with Wash- 
ington, sailed for Rhode Island, in order to retake that island, 
which had become highly important in consequence of the 
fortifications erected by the English ; an enterprise also 
thwarted by the concurrence of a number of unfavorable cir- 
cumstances. 

Kalb reckoned firmly on the triumph of the Franco-Amer- 
ican arms, and confidently expected that, by a series of ener- 
getic and well-concerted measures, the English would not 
only be worsted, but compelled to evacuate the American 
continent. As in that event, which for a time he regarded as 
a foregone conclusion, there would have been nothing left for 
him to do in this country, he requested his wife, in writing to 
her from White Plains on the 14th of August, 1778, to apply 
to his old commander the Due de Broglie, for a position under 
him, in case he should take the chief command of the French 
army at the breaking out of a general European war, then 
universally expected. 

But the course of events was otherwise. Neither did a 
general war break out in Europe, nor was America destined 



162 LIFE OF 'K ALB. 

to be so soon delivered from her enemies. The English, for 
the present, maintained all their positions, and Washington 
could do nothing more than to observe them. During all the 
month of August, Kalb was with the main army at White 
Plains, whence they decamped only on the 16th of September, 
1778, to occupy a height on Fishkill, near the Hudson, where 
our hero remained, with a few short interruptions, until the 
end of November. The camp of his division was distant 
eleven miles and a half from the Fishkill, and extended along 
the road leading thence to Sharon and Boston, while covered 
by Fish Creek in front. Round about was excellent pasture 
for horses." As the two armies lay opposite each other in 
entire inaction, the petty war of outposts or against maraud- 
ers and robbers, was extremely w^earisome and exhausting, 
without affording the slightest satisfaction to the military 
spirit of the higher grade of ofBcers. Under these circum- 
stances Kalb would gladly have accompanied his young friend 
Lafayette, who went to Paris to spend the winter, which prom- 
ised to pass away in inaction, and that only the express desire 
of the Comte de Broglie kept hira with the army. " No one," 
he writes to his wife from Fishkill the 7th of October, 1778, 
*' has better reason, and a more ardent wish than I to behold 
his family once more, and no one makes greater sacrifices to 
manifest his devotion and fortitude in the king's service. 
Since France has interfered in the war, the subjugation of the 
continent by the English is out of the question. Possibly they 
will even surrender Rhode Island, New York, Long Island, 
and Staten Island, to defend their own country and their re- 
maining colonies. At all events there will be no more move- 
ments of importance. I therefore regard the war as ended, 
so far as I am concerned, having no disposition to do battle 



LIFEOFKALB. 163 

against the savages on the frontier. As often as a Frenchman 
returns home, my heart is ready to burst with homesickness. 
I am very tired of the war here, and would have been but 
too glad to go to Paris with Lafayette. Receive him kindly 
and courteously, and thank him for the numerous proofs of 
regard he has extended to me since the beginning of our 
friendship. I shall thank him as long as I live, and value and 
esteem him most highly." 

Lafayette himself did not set out so soon as he had intend- 
ed. He fell dangerously ill about the middle of the month, 
and spent several days with Kalb as a convalescent about the 
middle of November, before taking leave of him, on the 
twenty-third, to set sail for Boston. The two friends were 
not to meet again. 

On the 12th of October Kalb entered upon a new camp 
near New Hackensack, about fourteen miles northeast of the 
Fishkill, because he found the fodder for his horses better and 
more plentiful. His division was distant about twenty-four 
miles from Washington's headquarters. The latter, dreading 
an attack of the English upon the positions of the American 
army in the Highlands, ordered Kalb, on the 24th of October, 
to retire again to Fishkill, in order to be nearer to the sup- 
porting points of the army, and the intrenchments on the 
Hudson, in case of a hostile movement. The preparations 
and embarcations of the enemy were this time, however, in- 
tended for southern points, and not for the force on the Hud- 
son. '" This morning," he writes on the 25th of October, " I 
am about to ride to headquarters, at the invitation of the com- 
mander-in-chief, to discuss the plan for our next winter-quar- 
ters. Ajygood sign. I do not yet know where and what they 
will be. If the English do not quit their positions, we shall 



164 LIFE OF feALB. 

most likely be compelled once more to build shanties, as 
we did last winter, and to hold out in them. It is not yet 
known here what they will do. I have been of opinion ever 
since last May, that they will leave the United States entire- 
ly before the winter sets in." However, the enemy did not 
change his position, and Kalb was consigned to four additional 
weeks of inaction in his old camp at Fishkill. 

" For some days we have been in the midst of winter," he 
writes on the 24th of November from Newburg on the Hud- 
son f^ " it is snowing fast, and it is by no means agreeable to 
sleep out of doors, even under tents. The service is severe, 
and the vveather is raw. Yesterday, when it was very cold, 
I crossed the Hudson with my division, and shall remain in 
Newburg until the arrival of the prisoners of Burgoyne's 
army, on their march from New England to Virginia. I have 
orders to throw out six detachments to conduct them to the 
Delaware, and then to go into the same sort of winter-quar- 
ters in the woods and mountains of New Jersey, as we occu- 
pied last winter in Pennsylvania." " Yesterday," he contin- 
ues on the 29th of November, writing from his camp at 
Smith Cove, fourteen miles from Newburg, " I went to West 
Point on foot, being anxious to see it before quitting the 
Hudson forever. The weather was splendid, but the road 
contemptible. I had to choose between clambering over the 
rocks and wading in the morass, or going up to my knees in 
the water. I returned the same evening, having made twen- 
ty-eight English miles in all, and was obliged to change my 
guides, as those who set out with me were too much fatigued 
to go back. Never in my life have I made so fatiguing a 
jaunt ; I hardly felt my feet at last ; but, while I certainly 
would not repeat the excursion, I am very glad to have seen 
the beautiful West Point." 



LIFE OF KALB. 165 

The commander-in-chief, whose corps embraced Kalb's 
division, which consisted of the Maryland and Delaware 
brigades, readied Middlebrook in New Jersey on the 11th 
of December, and there went into winter-quarters, whither 
Kalb had marched from Smith Cove on the 4th of the same 
month. The American army now extended in the form of a 
crescent from Danbiiry in Connecticut to the Hudson at 
West Point, and thence, by way of Elizabethtown, to Mid- 
dlebrook. The best possible protection of the country, the 
maintenance of the important military positions in the High- 
lands, the security and discipline of the troops, and the cheap 
and convenient procurement of supplies, ^ere the leading 
objects of this selection.'"' 

Kalb remained at Middlebrook until the end of February, 
without interruption, and without being greatly edified by 
the monotony of camp life. It was not alone the compul- 
sory idleness, so repugnant to his disposition, but also the 
enormous expense of the sojourn, and the absence of all sort 
of congenial fellowship, which embittered his long winter 
evenings. "I had resolved, as you know," he writes to his 
wife about this time, " not, under any circumstances, to con- 
sume any part of my private property while serving in 
America. I find it flatly impossible to adhere to this pur- 
pose. Everything is excessively dear at this place. Al- 
though I have expended nothing for clothes or linen, my pay 
is not sufficient to requite my servants and procure the eata- 
bles not furnished by Congress, such as coffee, tea, butter, 
sugar, and milk. From the army stores we draw our meat, 
candles, bread, barley, soap, etc. The consumption of meat 
is almost incredible. It is impossible to habituate the people 
of this country to anything like order or regularity of living, 



166 LIFEOF^ALB. 

and equally impossible for one who has grown up in the 
midst of order, discipline, and punctuality, to accustom him- 
self to the indolence of these people. Beside my three ad- 
jutants and the officer of the guard, ten servants and a 
number of mounted orderlies daily eat at my table. Horses 
are a still more expensive article. Congress supplies me 
with eight team-horses, but the generals purchase their own 
saddle-horses, which are excessively dear. In spite of the 
greatest economy, I am therefore spending enormous sums 
of money. Although the prices of all necessaries have in- 
creased nearly a hundredfold since my arrival in America, I 
consider it beneath my dignity to apply to the States for a 
subsidy. I might prefer the request to the king, but fear 
the effect of such a step on my promotion. These annoy- 
ances are aggravated by the mortifications growing out of 
the differences in manners and customs between Americans 
and Europeans, and the jealousy of the native against the 
foreign officers. Scarce one of the latter is contented with 
his position. There is not a second lieutenant who, on com- 
ing here, does not expect to be better treated than all the 
rest of his countrymen. I studiously avoid entangling my- 
self in these petty bickerings, but it it is sufficiently disgust- 
ing to^ be told of them. It is all I can do to preserve the , 
peace in my own military family." L " I wish you and all of 
you," thus Kalb concludes his New Year's salutation to his 
wife, on the 1st of January, 1779, "health, contentment, and 
happiness for the coming year ; for myself, if circumstances 
permit, I wish a happy return to your midst. I could dis- 
course a long time on this topic, for you know, better than 
any one else, what a sacrifice I make in this long absence 
from you and the children, as I might live at home more 



LIFE OF KALB, 167 

I 

happily and peaceably than any other man The privations 
to which I am subjected, the extraordinary exertions inci- 
dent to the mode of warfare and to the variable climate of 
this country, the frequent movements from camp to camp, 
which makes rest and comfort unattainable even in winter, 
all these hardships are onerous to a man at my time of life, 
and make me extremely anxious to return. I have no just 
cause of complaint, because I have come of my own free will. 
I hope, however, that the king and his ministers will give me 
great credit for having remained here in deference to their 
wishes, exposed to every vicissitude, while the great majori- 
ty of the French officers have returned home. I place my 
trust in Providence that I shall be spared to behold again 
the object of my most ardent love, and all that can tend to 
make me happy and contented for the rest of my days. For 
the present I must request an extension of my two years' 
furlough, which has nearly expired; there will be no diffi- 
culty if you will only apply to the Comte de Broglie." 

To recruit bis health and replenish his wardrobe, Kalb 
went to Philadelphia about the end of February, 1779, and 
remained there until the 30th of March, when he returned to 
the camp at Middlebrook. Here, and in Boundbrook, which 
is close by, he was stationed until the reopening of the cam- 
paign in the beginning of June. The life of the camp was 
more quiet and monotonous than ever. Kalb was in the 
habit of w'hiling away his leisure hoars in making plans for 
the future. As Gerard, the French envoy, then contemplat- 
ed returning home, Kalb thought of applying to become his 
successor, and repeatedly commissioned his wife to enlist the 
interposition of his friends with the minister. But the 
Chevalier de la Luzerne bad been appointed before Gerard's 



168 LITE OF •K ALB. 

departure, so that Kaib was ot course compelled to abandon 
the idea. 

Before setting out tor the Hudson he received the follow- 
ing letter from Paris, from the Comte de Broglie, the only- 
answer vouchsafed to all his addresses to him. While it 
gave Kalb no assurance of promotion in France, it is evi- 
dence of the interest taken by the French ministers and gen- 
erals in the progress of the American war, and as such may 
find a place here." 

" Mme. de Kalb," de Broglie writes on the 31st of March, 
1778, "has forwarded me the letters with which you have 
honored me from time to time. The time for your opera- 
tions in the field has arrived. We are in hopes, here, that 
the weakness of the English at the isolated points of the 
coast in their occupation, which they are compelled to expose 
on all sides, will justify the American troops in an effort to 
expel the enemy. It would seem, at all events, that they 
have it in their power to harass and enclose him, and to cut 
off or at least greatly impede his supplies and forage. I 
have not a moment's doubt that you will omit no opportu- 
nity of explaining to the leading men of the army and of 
Congress the views of what is judicious and practicable, 
which you are so well qualified to impart. Too much cannot 
be done to make them understand the advantage offered by 
their position, if they will make the efforts fairly to be ex- 
l-.ected of them. 

" I need not go into details with you. At my proposal 
to the Prince de Montbarey, sanctioned by him, he permits 
you to use the cypher concerted between you and me. I be- 
lieve you will receive instructions from that minister in re- 
lation to the plans to be adopted by Congress, or at least in 



LIFE OF KALB. 169 

reference to that portion of those plans, the success of which 
your counsels can assure. 

" I have personally discussed this matter with the Prince 
de Montbarey, my dear baron. The minister, who is ex- 
tremely well-disposed to you, has promised me to include 
you in the list of brigadiers to be next aj^pointed by him, 
without waiting for a general advancement. I have assured 
him of your gratitude, and doubt not that you will make 
every effort to give fresh proofs of your devotion to the 
king's service. 

" As I have not kept the key to your cypher, be pleased, 
hereafter, to communicate, in it, directly to the Prince de 
Montbarey, what cannot well be written in the ordinary 
character. I heartily desire your entire good fortune ; you 
know how deep an interest I take in your welfare." 

That these promises were but idle words we shall see in 
the sequel. For the present we accompany our hero to the 
Hudson, whither he marched from Middlebrook with his di- 
vision on the 3d of June, IVVQ," to cooperate with the re- 
maining divisions of Washington's army in preventing the 
advance of the enemy into the Highlands.* 

* The Highlands is the name of the district of country extending along 
the Hudson from CornwdU to Haverstraw, so called on account of the moun- 
tains and crags here overhanging the water. 

8 



CHAPTER IX. 

Clinton's Plans at the Opening of the Summer Campaign of lYYQ. — He 
Takes Verplank's Point and Stony Point on the Hudson. — Washing- 
ton Baffles his Attempt on West Point. — Kale's Division with the 
Main Army at Smith Cove. — His Letter to his Wife. — Dreary 
Prospects. — Both Armies Spend the Summer in Observing Each 
Other. — Laborious Service — Wayne Retakes Stony Point. — Impor- 
tance of this Success to the American Army. — The Impressions it 
Produced on the Foreign Generals and Envoys. — Kalb's Delight at 
the Victory. — Camp in the Woods. — Cruelty of the English. — Their 
Raids into the Country. — Weight of Kale's Testimony. — Dinner at 
Kale's. — Celebration of the Taking of Stony Point, — A Beautiful 
Comparison from the ^neid. — Flkury's Gallantry. — Kalb Posted 
all Summer at Buttermilk Falls. — Strength of his Division. — Inac- 
tivity of Both Armies. — Privations. — Washington's Intended At- 
tack upon New York Frustrated by D'Estaing. — Winter-quarters 
AT Morristown New Jersey. — Severe Winter. — Unheard of Cold. — 
Camp Sufferings. — Scarcity of Money. — No Credit. — Depreciation 
of Paper Money. — Inaction Worse than a Severe Campaign. — Kale's 
Account of the State •f Things. — Rudeness of the Native to the 
Foreign Officers. — Smallwood Against Kale. — Hostile Movements 
OP the English from Staten Island. — Corps of Observation in New 
Jersey, first under St. Clair, then under Kalb, in March, 1780. — 
Fatigue Duty. — Kale's Tactics at the Setting In of the Thaw. — 
Washington's Letter and Opposite Views. — Kalb Ordered Else- 
where ON THE 3d of April. — He is Destined for the South with his 
Division to the Relief of Charleston. 

rriHE English General Clinton had resolved to open the 

-*- campaign of 1779 with a brilliant coup de main, for 

which purpose he had marched up the Hudson from New 

York in the latter part of May, in order to fall into the rear 



LIFE OF KALB. 171 

of the American army, posted in New Jersey, and to possess 
himself of the hostile forts erected in the Highlands, particu- 
larly West Point, as well as King's Ferry, the only remaining 
river communication between the Eastern and Western forts. 
This ferry was commanded by the projecting hills at the 
eastern and western landing, called Verplank's Point and 
Stony Point, on the former of which Fort Lafayette had been 
erected, while the latter had been at least partially fortified. 
Clinton, however, being master of the river and of its eastern 
bank, found little difficulty in reducing these important points 
which opened his way into the Highlands. It was done on 
the 1st and 2d of June, two days after his march from New 
York. He immediately ordered the intrenchments to be re- 
paired and completed, and Stony Point to be strongly 
fortified. 

Washington had correctly inferred from Clinton's prepa- 
rations, that it was the design of the latter to separate and 
overwhelm the American forces, and to occupy West Point 
and the Highlands. For the defence of Yerplank and Stony 
Point he was too late, as his army did not leave their winter- 
quarters at Middlebrook and Boundbrook before the day of 
Clinton's departure from New York. However, he baffled 
the further measures of the English commander by forced 
marches, by judicious dispositions of his troops along the Hud- 
son, and by proper reenforcements sent to the corps immedi- 
ately threatened. Before Clinton could advance upon West 
Point, McDougall, the commander of the fort, was strength- 
ened, and the position of the main body of the Americans at 
New Windsor, close by West Point, and at Smith Cove, a moun- 
tain pass in the rear of Havestraw, so effectively supported 
that he could not risk an assault. He therefore returned to 



172 LIFE OF KALB. 

New York, whence he entered upon a system of raids and 
forays into Connecticut. 

Kalb, with his division, was w^ith the main army at Smith 
Cove. " It would seem." he writes from that point to his 
wife, the 10th of June, 1779," " that a severe and exhausting 
campaign is before us. If we remain here much longer, we 
shall be compelled by want of forage to send all our horses 
away from the camp. Had we but a fleet in the bay of New 
York, we could end the war at a blow by an attack on that 
city. As the enemy are compelled to devote almost all their 
attention to their islands, New York is left nearly undefended 
toward the sea. At this moment the British have but one 
line-of-battle ship of sixty-four guns between Rhode Island 
and New York, and but four frigates, the largest of which 
mounts only thirty-six guns. Four French sixty-fours and six 
frigates would command the entire coast, and take everything 
that is to be found in any of the ports occupied by the enemy. 
Mention these facts to the Comte de Broglie, or any one who 
takes an interest in the triumph of our ai'ms." 

As the French Government failed to improve this oppor- 
tunity, while the Americans alone were too weak to avail 
themselves of it, the observing attitude of both armies con- 
tinued unchanged until the middle of July. Kalb, disheart- 
ened by this endless delay and irksome inaction, would gladly 
have returned to France, had he not considered himself bound 
to serve in the American ranks by the known intention of his 
furlough. His repeated requests to be recalled and promoted 
in the French array were unnoticed, and for this reason alone 
he remained. " What I am doing here," he writes to his wife 
on the 15th of July from Smith Cove,^* "is extremely dis- 
agreeable. Without my excellent constitution it would be 



LIFE OF KALB. 173 

impossible to bear up long under this service. Yesterday I 
made the most wearisome trip of my life, visiting the posts 
and pickets of the army in the solitudes, woods, and mountains, 
clambering over the rocks, and picking my way in the most 
abominable roads. My horse having fallen lame, I had to 
make the whole distance on foot. I never suffered more from 
heat. On my return I had not a dry rag on me, and was so 
tired that I could not sleep. My temperate and simple hab- 
its greatly contribute to keep me in good health. My gen- 
eral health is very good, and I hardly notice the annoyances 
of camp life. Dry bread and water make my breakfast and 
supper ; at dinner I take some meat. I drink nothing but 
water, never coffee, and rarely chocolate or tea, in order to 
avoid irritating ray eyes, which are the more useful to me as 
my four aids, partly from ignorance and partly from laziness, 
leave the writing incident to the service unattended to. So I 
am compelled to do it all myself, while they cultivate their 
digestions. I have now no more earnest wish than soon to 
see you and the children again, and never to leave you more. 
If our separation is destined to be of any advantage to us, it 
is dearly paid for." 

While Clinton ravaged Connecticut, Washington, not to 
be lured from his position in the Highlands, resolved to un- 
dertake the recovery of Verplank's Point and Stony Point, 
which had been strongly fortified by the English, He in- 
trusted General Wayne with the execution of the plan 
against Stony Point, which, on the 15th of July, succeeded 
beyond all expectation. Important as was this success in its 
practical effects, as foiling Clinton's designs on the upper 
Hudson, its chief value consisted in the impulse it gave to 
the spirit and confidence of the people, and the proof it af- 



174 LIFE OF KALB. 

forded that the American generals were not better fitted to 
make dispositions of their troops, than their officers and men 
were prompt and fearless in carrying them out. It was par- 
ticularly the foreign generals and diplomatists who began, 
after this victory, to believe in the possibility of a successful 
issue of the war, achieved by the arras of the Americans 
themselves. Steuben, who had largely contributed to the 
.' result by introducing and enforcing the use of the bayonet 
in the Union army, pronounced the achievement one of the 
most brilliant of modern warfare ; Gerard, the French am- 
bassador, is convinced that it will greatly enhance the opin- 
ion of Europe on the military qualities of the Americans ; '* 
and Kalb, usually so calm and self-possessed, is lavish in 
praise of Wayne and Fleury, as well as of their soldiers. 
On the 18th of July, 1779, from his bivouac in Deane's 
woods, he writes to his wife at greater length about the tak- 
ing of Stony Point, and the days preceding and following 
that exploit, than about any other episode of the war. 

"We left Smith Cove," he says,'' "on the 16th of July, 
in the afternoon, to march to this spot over roads hardly pass- 
able for goats, carrying our provisions with us. We are now 
seven miles from our camp and five miles from Fort Mont- 
gomery on the Hudson, in the midst of the forest, and sur- 
rounded by crags. We have kept in bivouac for two nights, 
which were pretty cool, while the days are very hot. I live 
on cold meat, and lie at night upon a cloak stuffed with 
leaves. I expected orders to advance upon Fort Montgom- 
ery, to cross the river at that point, and fonn a junction with 
the other troops of the right wing, which are posted above 
and below me. It seemed to me probable that a movement 
was contemplated against the hostile posts on the left bank 



LIFE OF KALB. 175 

at King's Ferry, Stony Point, on the right bank, having been 
carried in the night from the 15th to the 16th of July, and 
the garrison taken prisoner. This Stony Point is at King's 
Ferry, ten miles south of this place, and fifty miles above New 
York. General Clinton, having left a garrison at that post, 
was amusing himself in the Sound and in Connecticut, plun- 
dering, burning, and ravaging. Fairfield, Bedford, Norwalk, 
New Haven, and West Haven have already felt his rage. 
The mode of warfare here practised is the most barbarous 
that could be conceived ; whatever the enemy cannot carry 
off in their forays, is destroyed or burned. They cannot 
possibly triumph in the end. Their cruelty and inhumanity 
must sooner or later draw down upon their heads the ven- 
geance of heaven, and blast a Government which authorizes 
these outrages. In fact, this conduct seems to be the con- 
sequence or the effect of threats uttered by the peace 
commissioners who were sent hither last year. Finding their 
overtures rejected, they declared that as America was dis- 
posed to adhere to its alliance with England's natural enemy, 
the war would thenceforth be so conducted as to leave the 
country of little value to France. It were to be wished that 
France would retaliate by some expedition sent to burn the 
towns and villages on the English coast, as it is the league 
with us which saddles these depredations on the Americans." 
It has become customary, in modern times, on the part 
of English writers especially, to represent these acts of bar- 
barity as trivial, or as commanded by considerations of pol- 
icy ; and modern historians habitually regard the complaints 
and imprecations of the Americans, as exaggerations ema- 
nating from those who have been specially unfortunate. 
Kalb's indignation at the outrages perpetrated by the Eng- 



176 LIFE OF -K ALB. 

lish on their expeditions of plunder and devastation, is fbe 
best proof that the acts of rapine far exceeded the average 
of what was required or tolerated by the warfare of the 
times. A French officer, who had assisted at the invasion of 
Germany under Richelieu and Soubise in the Seven Years' 
War, had enjoyed opportunities of witnessing the almost pro- 
verbial impositions and exactions of the French anny, and 
was of all men the least likely to be squeamish in such mat- 
ters, so that the ordinary grade of destruction would hardly 
have attracted his attention. How far, then, must the brutali- 
ties of the English have gone, if even Kalb grows sentimen- 
tal in reciting them, and invokes the wrath of heaven upon 
their heads. 

" Yesterday," continues the same letter, " I was reconnoi- 
tring all day in the vicinity of my post, of course on foot ; 
I must repeat the same operation forthwith, in order to be 
familiar with my position by dinner-time." "Though very 
tired, I have already returned from my excursion," he con- 
tinues at four o'clock ot'the same day, "and have just dined. 
The staff officers of my division were my guests. We were 
all very hungry, and did full justice to the mutton and beef 
which constituted the repast ; large round crackers served as 
plates, in the absence of any kind of crockery. The scene 
forcibly reminded me of the conquest of Italy by JEneas, 
and of the words of Ascanius, when they had reached the 
future site of Rome. There, too, hunger impelled them to 
devour the cakes upon which their food had been set before 
them, and recalled the oracle of the harpies, that they would 
not reach the end of their wanderings and toils, nor call 
Italy theirs, until they would have eaten their tables with 
their meals. I have, unfortunately, no Ascanius with me, 



LIFE OF K ALB. 177 

but I desire most ardently that my fate may be decided as 
was that of ^neas, that the independence of America, like 
the conc^uest of Italy, may now be realized, and that, after 
we, too, have eaten our tables, the close of our warfare and 
our toils may be likewise approaching.''^ 

" While we were still at table, a letter came from General 
Washington, dated the 16th of July from his headquarters at 
New Windsor, in which I receive my share of compliments 
for the valor and good conduct of our troops, for my division 
was also represented at the assault on Stony Point of the 
previous evening. The letter put our whole company into 
excellent humor, though of course we had been longer and 
better acquainted with all the details of the successful coujj 
de main than the General himself I drank no rum as the 
others did, yet I was carried away by the same enthusiasm. 
I called Mr. Jacob, and told him to bring me a bottle of 
champagne. He stared at me in astonishment, saying he 
had none. Then there must be some port wine at least ? 
"That is on the baggage w^agons," answered Jacob. I 
apologized for my defective memory, and was sorry to have 
tantabzed the company with delusive hopes ; but they were 
satisfied to take my good will for the deed. I promised all 
my guests to give them the best of champagne at Paris, and 
shall be delighted to keep my word. 

" The taking of Stony Point forms an epoch in the history 
of the war of American Independence, because it was on this 
occasion that our troops first ventured to attack the intrench- 
ments of the enemy, and because they displayed great bravery 
in doing so. The action lasted only twenty-five minutes. A 
hundred or a hundred and twenty of the British were killed 
or wounded, while we had thirty killed and sixty wounded. I 



178 LIFE OF*KALB. 

mean to tell the truth, in spite of what the newspapers will 
say about our losses, greatly exaggerating, of coarse, the 
number of the fallen foe, and cutting down our own casual- 
ties. But I am unable to appreciate the subtlety of this 
system of lies told by everybody and believed by no one, 
and prefer to comfort myself with the well-tried proverb, 
" On nefait point d^otnelette, sans casser des ceufs.^^ Every 
cook knows that, and every officer knows that in assailing a 
post, when the garrison have not fallen asleep, lives must be 
lost. It is odd that in the two years I have been in service 
here, constantly with the army, the troops under my com- 
mand (an^ I have always had very strong divisions) have 
not taken part in any battle or engagement, and that I 
myself, so to speak, have not seen a gun go off. Were I a 
braggart 1 might go on to say that since I have been with 
the army the enemy have had little success, and that they 
are afraid to attack us because they know I am here ; but 
the coincidence is really singular." 

On the 21st of July Kalb, writing from Buttermilk Falls, 
two miles south of West Point, concludes this report by 
saying : " I marched my division hither yesterday and to-day, 
by way of Fort Montgomery. Our whole army has been 
concentrated here and in this neighborhood, on both banks 
of the river, since the day of Stony Point. The storming 
of that work seems to mortify the hostile general a good 
deal. He has come up to King's Ferry with a numerous 
fleet, and appears to have cannonaded Stony Point, when 
destroyed and evacuated by our forces. Be so good as to 
tell the Comte de Broglie, that Lieutenant-colonel Fleury 
has earned gre^t renown at the capture of that point. He 
took two stand of c 'ors of the Seventeenth Regiment, and 



LIFE OF KALB. 179 



'I 

jial I 



it was he who tore the English standard from the walls, 
believe he will be permitted to keep the flag, as a special 
mark of distinction." 

Kalb remained at Buttermilk Falls during the summer ^ 
and autumn, without meeting, in the course of these four 
months, with any memorable adventure. His division con- 
sisted of one regiment from Delaware and seven from Mary- 
land, and was divided into two brigades, of which the first, 
under Smallwood comprised the First, Third, Fifth, and 
Seventh Maryland Regiments, while the second, under Gist, 
was formed of the Second, Fourth, and Sixth Maryland and 
a Delaware Regiment. All the troops under Kalb's orders 
then numbered 2,030." 

As the entire campaign of the year 1779 is marked only 
by the operations of the French and English fleets in the 
West India waters, and is characterized in other respects by 
the utter inactivity of the opposing forces, so the American 
and English forces on the Hudson also confined themselves 
to mutual reconnoissances and observations. Washington 
turned the time to good account by having his troops 
instructed and reformed by Steuben, by fortifying West 
Point as well as the other points on the Hudson, and by 
making Clinton indisposed to operate against him there. 
This inaction made the service in the American camp not a 
whit the less fatiguing and irksome. For weeks the army 
lay in the woods without their baggage. Often there was a 
scRrcity of the most needful articles, and Kalb relates that 
for a whole month he slept on the bare ground or in his 
camp-stool, without however impairing his health. It was 
only at the arrival of the Marquis de la Luzerne, the new 
French Ambassador, that every eflfort appears to have been 



180 LIFE OF, KALB, 

made at least momentarily to mantle the prevailing distress, / 
and to dignity it with an air of Spartan simplicity. Kalb, 
who had served with Luzerne under the Due de Broglie in 
the Seven Years' War, now, on the 15th of September, 1779, 
rode eighteen miles to meet his old comrade in arms. On 
his arrival at the camp he invited him to dine with all the 
American generals, and afterward bore him company for 
twenty-eight miles on his journey back to Philadelphia. 

Toward the fall Washington hoped to make an attempt 
upon New York, in concert with d'Estaing. The latter, 
however, instead of going to New York at once, suffered 
himself to be persuaded by Lincoln to storm Savannah, and, 
after being repulsed by the English, turned back his ships 
partly to Fi-ance, and partly to the West Indies. 

This awkward manceuvre once more disconcerted Wash- 
ington's favorite project of a descent upon New York, where 
Clinton had collected all his forces, prepared to give him a 
warm reception. Washington now resolved to give up all 
further offensive movements for that season, and to go into 
winter-quarters. For this purpose he formed his army into 
two divisions, one of which, under Heath, was to defend the 
Highlands, while the other, with whom he had his head- 
quarters, withdrew to Morristown in New Jersey. Kalb 
belonged to the latter body. He marched from Buttermilk 
Falls, after all the other generals, on the 26th of November, 
and reached his destination after a toilsome march of six days. 

These winter-quarters at Morristown have not acquired 
the same gloomy historic renown as those of two years pre- 
vious at Valley Forge ; but in reality they were attended 
with even greater sufferings. True, the existence of the 
army had ceased to be in question. The troops had achieved 



LIFE OF 'KALB. 181 

some successes, had learned to regard themselves as a united 
whole, and had become better disciplined and consolidated ; 
but the hardships of the soldier were greater than they had 
ever been. The unusually severe winter, which lasted from 
the end of November till April, and even made the ice of 
New York bay passable for heavy ordnance as far as Staten 
Island, made it impossible to bring up the necessary supplies. 
The commissary department had neither money nor credit ; 
the most indispensable articles of clothing, such as blankets 
and overcoats, were wanting, and the troops were on half 
and quarter rations for weeks. Moreover, in the absence of 
gold and silver, the paper issue steadily increased in quantity, 
and of course sank in value. This depreciation was aggra- 
vated by a false move of Congress, in giving it artificial cur- 
rency, and making it a legal tender at its nominal value. 
An unparalleled rise in the price of all the necessaries of life 
immediately ensued. In October, 1779, twenty dollars in 
paper had been equivalent to one dollar in specie ; in April, 
1780, the proportion was forty to one. The army being paid 
in paper at its nominal value, it is easy to form an idea of 
the distress prevailing among officers and privates. The 
annual salary of a major-general, which nominally amounted 
to two thousand dollars, was really little more than fifty 
dollars. 

Under these circumstances, with the exception of little 
foraging expeditions, an enterprise against the enemy, or 
indeed any movement in the open field, was not to be 
thought of. All that Kalb could do consisted in drilling his 
division when the weather permitted, and in reforming them 
upon the plan dictated by Steuben, as Inspector-General. 
On the other hand, nothing is better adapted to afford an 



182 LIFE OB KALB. 

impartial view of the condition of the camp, and of Kalb'a 
personal affairs, than the description of himself and his sur- 
roundings found in the letters then addressed to his wife and 
European friends. We take the liberty of compressing 
several of them into a single sketch."" 

"My division," he writes in December, 1779, "left West 
Point on the 26th of November. Our march lasted six days, 
and traversed a country almost entirely unpeopled ; it proved 
fatal to many of the soldiers, in consequence of the cold, the 
bad weather, the horrid roads, the necessity of spending the 
night in the open air, and our want of protection against 
snow and rain. We are here going into winter-quarters in 
the woods, as usual. Since the beginning of this month we 
have been busy putting up our shanties. But the severe 
frost greatly retards our work, and does not even permit us 
to complete our chimneys. Winter has set in fiercely ever 
since the end of November. In any other country our 
repose at this place would bear the name of an arduous cam- 
paign ; it is really worse. It may truly be said that a for- 
eign officer, who has served in America as long as I have, 
under such adversities, must be either inspired with bound- 
less enthusiasm for the liberties of the country, or possessed 
by the demons of fame and ambition, or impelled by an 
extraordinary zeal for the common cause of the king and his 
confederates. I knew, before I came, that I should have to 
put up with more than usual toils and privations, but I had 
no idea of their true extent. An iron constitution like mine 
is required to bear up under this sort of usage. 

" It is so cold," he continues in February, " that the ink 
freezes in my pen, while T am sitting close by the fire. The 
roads are piled with snow until, at some places, they are 



LIFE OF KALB. 183 

elevated twelve feet above their ordinary level. The present 
winter is especially remarkable for its uninterrupted and 
unvarying cold. The ice in the rivers is six feet thick. 
Since this part of America has been settled by Europeans, 
the North River at New York, w'here it is a mile and a half 
wide near its mouth, and subject to the ebb and flow of a 
strong tide, has not been frozen over so fast as to be pass- 
able by wagons. Unfortunately our camp will suffer even 
more from the thaw than from the frost, for it is but too 
much exposed to inundation. Those who have only been in 
Valley Forge and Middlebrook during the last two winters, 
but have not tasted the cruelties of this one, know not what 
it is to suffer. 

" The times are growing w^orse from hour to hour. The 
dearth of the necessaries of life is almost incredible, and 
increases from day to day. A hat costs four hundred dol- 
lars, a pair of boots the same, and everything else in pro- 
portion. The other day I was disposed to buy a pretty good 
horse. A price was asked which my pay for ten years 
would not have covered. Of course I did not take it, and 
shall try to get along with my other horses. Money scatters 
like chaff before the wind, and expenses almost double from 
one day to the next, while income, of course, remains sta- 
tionary. I have reduced my servants to the smallest number 
possible, which involves no great self-denial, as almost all 
servants are lazy, addicted to diink, and unreliable. The 
barber's comj^ensation w^ould at present consume all my pay; 
I have, therefore, made up my mind to shave myself. Being 
entirely in rags, I shall go to Philadelphia as soon as I can, 
to purchase new clothes, especially linen. The American 
officers have this advantage of us foreigners, that they can 



184 LIFEOBKALB. 

go home on furlough, and there recruit and reequip them- 
selves. Besides, they are assisted by their respective States 
with additional pay, with uniforms, and with such provisions 
as Congress does not furnish, such as tea, sugar, coffee, and 
chocolate. The foreign officers have none of these little, but 
acceptable privileges, and are, moreover, compelled to pay 
with six dollars what an American buys for one." 

In order to exhaust this very serious matter once for all, 
we here anticipate our recital by a few months, and insert an 
extract from a letter written by Kalb on the 29th of May, 
1780, to his friend Holtzendorff, from Petersburg, Virginia, 
when on his march to the South. " Provisions and other 
articles," he says, " are growing dearer and dearer, being 
now double what they were a year ago, even if paid in gold, 
one dollar of which is now equal to sixty dollars in paper. 
My march costs me enormous sums. I cannot travel with 
my equipage, and am therefore compelled to resort to inns. 
My six months' earnings will scarce defray the most indis- 
pensable outlay of a single day. Not long since I was com- 
pelled to take a night's lodging at a private house. For a 
bad supper and grog for myself, my three companions, and 
three servants, I was charged, on going off without a break- 
fast next day, the sum of eight hundred and fifty dollars. 
The lady of the house politely added that she had charged 
nothing for the rooms, and would leave the compensation for 
them to my discretion, although three or four hundred 
dollars would not be too much for the inconvenience to 
which she had been put by myself and my followers. And 
these are the people who talk about sacrificing their all in 
the cause of liberty ! Everything else is in proportion to 
these figures ; an ordinaiy horse is worth $20,000, 1 say 
twenty thousand dollars ! " 



LIFEOFKALB. 185 

Even more annoying than this disproportion was the re- 
volting churlishness often practised by the native officers to 
their comrades from abroad, in the distribution of the State 
subsidies above mentioned. A story of this kind preserved by 
Steuben, places the grievance of Kalb in the most striking 
light/^ At the very time that the latter commanded the 
Maryland division, the government of that State sent a stock 
of coffee, cognac, tea, and sugar, articles then entirely out of 
the market, and therefore doubly prized by the officers. 
When the box arrived, General Smallwood, a brigadier-gen- 
eral, and as such Kalb's subordinate, placed a watch over 
the supplies, with orders to allow no part of the contents to go 
into the hands of General Kalb, his superior, on the ground 
that one who was not a Marylander had no title to a share ! 

It is usually said, and with truth, that the service of 
princes is hard, but, judging by this specimeti, European 
officers must have found the service of liberty, with such 
comrades, a good deal harder. 

At the desire of General Washington, Kalb postponed his 
trip to Philadelphia to the setting in of the thaw, as there 
was but one major-general in camp besides himself, and as 
an attack upon the American posts, over the ice-bound rivers 
and bays, miglit be expected at any moment. The utmost 
vigilance was the more desirable, as the English, particularly 
in the month of January, had made a number of incursions, 
from Staten Island, over the ice of the Kill van KuU, into 
Elizabethtown and N'ewark, both of which were undefended, 
and as this war of outposts was almost disastrous to the 
American troops. To prevent the recurrence of these mis- 
haps Washington, on the 27th of January, 1780, appointed 
General St. Clair to the chief command of a corps of two 



186 LIFEOP»KALB. 

thousand men stationed there to rejDel the advance of the ene- 
my/'' This general was expected not only to defend the 
camp and the headquarters at Morristown against attack, 
to cover the country bordering on the enemy's lines, and to 
suppress all traffic with the city of New York, but also to as- 
certain the position and the posts of the enemy along the 
coast of New Jersey and Staten Island, and in short to insure 
the safety of the American army. The task was equally re- 
sponsible and difficult, and was well and efficiently performed 
by General St. Clair. This officer having received a furlough, 
Kalb received the command of this corps in his stead, on the 
29th of February, 1780. On the 1st of March he repaired 
to the lines. During the entire month, amid cold, snow, and 
thaw, he had the hardest duty to perform, in visiting an ex- 
tended line cf posts, reconoitring his positions, supervising 
the troops, and inspecting, by turns, every important point 
of the line. He was all day in the saddle, and moved his 
quarters back and forth between Amboy, Elizabethtowm, 
Newark, Springfield, Westfield, and Scotch Plains, and every 
point possibly threatened by the English forces. 

When the irost broke up in the month of March, another 
line of tactics was required. Kalb was anxious to guard his 
position against attacks by water, for which purpose he in- 
creased the number of his watch boats, and, on the 20th of 
March, wrote to Washington, as well as to General Greene, 
the quartermaster-general, to procure the requisite number 
of boats. 

®^ " I have received your favor of yesterday," Washington 
writes from headquarters, Morristown, March 21, 1780, "en- 
closing a letter for General Greene, which I shall not deliv*^r 
to liim, as I know he has not at present the means of building 



LIFEOPKALB. 187 

the boats you mention, I would therefore recommend to 
you to put out the best of those, which you may find in the 
several rivers, for the purpose of guard-boats. Upon refer- 
ring to, and considering your former letter upon this subject, 
I am of opinion that the stations which you then pointed 
out will be dangerous, so far as they respect the distance be- 
t^veen Elizabethtown and Amboy, the Sound there being so 
exceedingly narrow, that a boat pushed suddenly from the 
opposite shore in the night would more than probably take 
ours. Besides, I do not think we are to look for a de- 
scent in any considerable force from that quarter. The ene- 
my have generally hitherto embarked either at Long Island 
or upon the further side of Staten Island, and have come 
through the Kills and across Newark Bay, thereby avoiding 
all discovery from this shore, w^hich they would be subject 
to anywhere between Elizabethtown and Amboy. Newark 
Bay is, thereibre, in my opinion, the proper and the safe 
place for your guard-boats to ply. It is of considerable ex- 
tent, and a fleet of boats may be discovered either by their 
working or by sight some time before their approach. We 
have found, on repeated experiments, that the inhabitants will 
not remove their stock until the moment of danger ; indeed, at 
this season they have no j^laces to send them where they can 
be supplied with food. I would therefore have you give as 
general information as in your power, that an incursion of 
the enemy may be expected, and recommend to the people to 
drive back their stock upon the first communication of an 
alarm. I do not think it probable that the enemy will put 
their designs, if they have any, into execution while our Com- 
missioners are sitting at Amboy. I mention this as a matter 
of opinion only, and would not wish you to relax your vigi- 



188 LIFE O*' KALB. 

lance on that account. You will, no doubt, have the signals 
in the uttermost state of preparation, and keep a small party 
stationed with alarm guns below Chatham." 

After the receipt of this missive our hero remained in 
command of the lines for about a fortnight longer. As both 
parties refrained from acts of hostility during this period, the 
question remained undecided w^hether Washington's or Kalb's 
was the better opinion. On the 3d of April Kalb was relieved 
from this duty, and ordered to return to the main army, 
and march his division to tlie support of General Lincoln, 
who commanded at Charleston. He arrived in Morristown 
on the 4th of April, and left on the 5th for Philadelphia, 
where, however, he arrived only after a wearisome journey of 
three days, to enter, without delay, u|)on the preparations for 
his Southern expedition. 



CHAPTEE X. 

The Campaign in the South. — Importance of the Southern States to the 
English. — Neglect op them at the Outset. — Capture of Savannah. — 
Clinton Appreciates the Importance of Charleston. — Sails there 
from New York, with Seven Thousand Men. — Siege of Charleston in 
April and May, 1*780. — Washington sees the Danger and sends Re- 
enforcements. — Duportail goes there as Engineer. — Inadequate Sup- 
port. — The Maryland and Delaware Divisions, under Kalb, are put 
under Marching Orders. — Congress Sanctions Washington's Plan. — 
His Letter to the Board op War. — Kalb Goes to Philadelphia. — He 
Makes his Preparations for the March. — Embarks his Troops at 
Head of Elk. — Kalb Leaves Philadelphia the 13th of May, 1780. — 
He Goes from Richmond to Petersburg. — His Letter of the 29th op 
May. — Report of his Dispositions. — The State of Virginia is Luke- 
warm, AND Does what Amounts to Nothing. — News of the Surrender 
OF Charleston. — Kalb Marches Nevertheless. — He Reaches North 
Carolina on the 20th op June. — Toilsome March. — Want of Transpor- 
tation and Provisions. — North Carolina Does as Little as Virginia. — 
Desperate State of Things. — The Promised Militia and Supplies not 
Forthcoming. — Kalb at Deep River. — Is about to March into the 
Mountains, when Relieved by Gates. — Greene Passed Over. — Char. 
ACTER OF Gates. — Kalb's Letter to Gates. — Unvarnished Picture of 
the Situation. — Gates Thinks he Knows Better. — His Arrival in 
Camp. — Friendly Intercourse of the two Generals. — Gates Issues 
Marching Orders. — All the Officers Oppose this Hasty Measure. — 
Kalb's Useless Remonstrances. — Gates Infatuation. — The Army 
Breaks Camp on the 2'7th of July, 1780, for South Carolina.— Pro- 
visions and Forage not Sufficient for A Single Day. — False Repre- 
sentations. 

rpHE South, whither we are now to follow the steps of our 
^ hero, had been but sparingly and exceptionally drawn into 
the sphere of British operations during the first years of the 



190 LIFECWPKALB. 

war, partly because they had not sufficiently appreciated its 
importance even in reference to Northern movements, and 
partly because their forces had been too small to admit of 
division. After the flight of the Royal Governors from Vir- 
ginia and the Carolinas at the close of the year 17'75, the 
English Admiral Parker, in Jane 1776, endeavored to retake 
Charleston, and gain a foothold in South Carolina ; his re- 
pulse by Moultrie led the British generals to abandon all further 
attempts to repossess themselves of those provinces. After 
this the South was left to its fate for upward of two years, 
the war in the North occupying the undivided attention of 
the royal army and navy. It was late in 1778 before Colo- 
nel Campbell succeeded in making himself master of the im- 
portant town of Savannah, where he was shortly reenforced 
and superseded in command by General Prevost, who had 
hitherto directed operations in Florida. Clinton immediately 
sent Lord Cornwallis to Savannah, with what few troops 
could be spared in the North, to bring hack Georgia to the 
allegiance to the crown; but Cornwallis was compelled by 
stress of weather to return, with great loss, and without 
having accomplished his purpose. In the autumn of 1779 
the French Admiral, Connt d'Estaing, on his return from the 
West Indies, undertook to reduce Savannah, but lost too^ 
much time in fruitless negotiations, and was compelled to 
retire after an unsuccessful assault on the 9th of October, 
which was the occasion of the fall of the Polish Count Pulas- 
ki, on the Franco-American side. 

This piece of good fortune on the part of the English at 
once altered the entire aspect of affairs in America, and gave 
thern time and opportunity to recover. The French fleet 
separated, a part returning home and the remainder being 



LIFE OF KALB. 191 

distributed between the harbors of Martinique and Gua- 
deloupe, and Washington, deprived of d'Estaing's support, 
could not execute his projected movement against New 
York. Clinton now began to understand the importance of 
the Southern provinces, and the necessity of holding them to 
tlie success of a campaign in the North. Congress having no 
money to give the French and Spaniards for munitions of 
war, cannon, uniforms, and medicines, was obliged to pay 
for them in productions such as indigo, rice, tobacco, and 
turpentine, which were grown in the Southern colonies, and 
exported from Charleston and Savannah. The first thing to 
be done, therefore, was to take and occupy Charleston before 
the setting in of the summer heats, and to control South 
Carolina by means of itb port, as Georgia was controlled by 
the possession of Savannah. Under these circumstances 
Clinton had made up his mind to undertake an expedition in 
the midst of winter ; and he himself set sail from New York 
with seven thousand men on the 20th of December, 1779. 
After a voyage of six weeks the fleet reached Savannah, and 
then sailed up the coast to the islands southwest of Charles- 
ton, where the troops disembarked the 10th and 11th of 
February, 1780. On the 29th of March they crossed the 
Ashley River about fourteen miles above the city, and opened 
the siege on the 1st of April, which ended on the 12th of 
May in the surrender of the town by General Lincoln. 

Washington had no sooner seen the danger impending 
over the latter, than he 1 ad made every eflTort to reenforce 
him. Though he could hardly spare any troops himself, as 
early as the 12th of December, 1779, before even Clinton 
had left New York, he ordered the Virginia line^* to march 
south immediately and unite with Lincoln, who was of 



192 LIFE of KALB. 

course left in the lurch by the State militia. " Our safety," 
Lincoln writes repeatedly to John Laurens from Charles- 
town,^* " depends on the seasonable arrival of such reenforce- 
ments as will oblige him (the enemy) to raise the siege." 
Want of the most necessary articles of apparel and of trans- 
portation detained the 737 regulars of Virginia at Peters- 
burg till the beginning of March ; when, however, they 
travelled a distance of five hundred and five English miles 
by forced marches in thirty days, and on the Vth of April, 
1780, reached Charleston,®^ invested by the enemy a week 
before. In addition to these troops Washington sent Lincoln 
an eminent engineer officer in the person of General Dupor- 
tail (who, in 1791, became French minister of war), recom- 
mending him as a most reliable adviser in all emergencies; 
but Duportail also, without any fault of his, reached Charles- 
ton only on the 25th of April, and found the position unten- 
able, if not unexpectedly relieved by a strong force.®* When 
it is considered that in those days it required four weeks to 
communicate between Charleston and New York, it is easily 
seen that upon receiving news of this character, dated in 
February, at the beginning of April, Washington might still 
believe in the possibility of rescuing Charleston by a pow- 
erful body of troops. When, therefore, at the end of March 
he heard of additional shipments of English troops going on 
at New York, he took immediate steps to have the Maryland 
and Delaware division in readiness to march to the further 
support of Lincoln. 

"Something should be hazarded here," Washington wntes 
on April 2, 1780, from Morristown to the President," "rely- 
ing on the internal strength of the country, for the purpose 
of giving further succor to the Southern States, where there 



LIFE OF KALB. 193 

is not the same dependence. I shall therefore put the Ma- 
ryland line, and the Delaware regiment, which acts with it, 
under marching orders immediately, and have directed pro- 
visions to be made for transporting them as far as Philadel- 
phia ; and I propose that their march, if practicable, should 
commence on the sailing of the detachment from New York. 
But before the measure is carried into execution, I shall be 
happy to know the sense of Congress on its expediency. 
The consequences may be very important either way, and I 
wish to have their instructions for my government. 

" In case the detachment is to march, its ulterior proceed- 
ings and route from Philadelphia will depend on the orders 
which Congress, or the Board of War, by their directions, 
shall give ; for it is impossible for me, under our circum- 
stances, to give directions upon this occasion. The quarter- 
master and commissary-general are both in Philadelphia, and 
will exert themselves, I am persuaded, to carry into execu- 
tion any plan for the transportation and accommodation of 
the troops that may be judged most eligible, as far as it may 
be in their power. Baron de Kalb, who is now at the head 
of the Maryland division, will command the detachment in 
case it proceeds, and will set out to-morrow or the next day 
for Philadelphia to assist and expedite the arrangements for 
its future movements. If the troops could embark without 
delay at the Head of Elk, and arrive safe in James River, it 
would not only be a great ease to them, but it would expe- 
dite their arrival at the southward, and prevent many deser- 
tions, which will probably happen if they march through 
their State. But how far this mode of proceeding may be 
eligible, I will not pretend to determine, as the enemy, in case 
they should be advised of it, which evei-y precaution of se- 
9 



194 LIFEOfKALB. 

crecy would be necessary to prevent, miglit, by sending 
armed vessels into the bay, attempt to intercept them in 
their passage. Major Lee's corps is under marching orders 
for the southward, of which I have advised the Board of 
"War, and the commanding officer is directed to proceed with 
it as soon as he adjusts them with the proper arrangements.'* 

As was mentioned at the close of the preceding chapter, 
Kalb had returned to headquarters two days after the date 
of the letter just quoted, by order of the commander-in- 
chief, in order to proceed to Philadelphia as speedily as pos- 
sible for the arrangement of his private affairs. Washing- 
ton's letter of the 4th of April induced him to hasten his 
departure, and set out on the following day. 

" I have, in consequence of the opinion of the last council 
of war," Washington writes to Kalb on April 4, 1780, from 
Morristown,^" "left it with Congress finally to determine 
upon the march of the Maryland division to tlie southward. 
That no time may be lost in the transportation of the troops, 
should Congress agree in sentiment with the council, I am to 
desire you to proceed immediately to Philadelphia ; and if 
you find, upon your arrival there, that the troops are to 
move, concert with the Board of War and the commissary 
and quartermaster-general the necessary arrangements for 
their provision and accommodation. But should it be de- 
termined that the march of the body of men alluded to is at 
this time either inexpedient or unnecessary, you will be 
pleased, after completing your private business, to return to 
your command in the army. If you proceed to the south- 
ward, I wish you a safe and expeditious march, and every 
success that you can possibly desire." 

On Kalb's arrival at Philadelphia on the 8th of Apri^l, 



LIFEOFKALB. 195 

he found that Congress had already decided to accept Wash- 
ington's suggestion. He therefore remained where he was, 
and engaged in the preparations necessary for the march of 
his troops. 

/ " In consequence of the detachment the enemy are now j 
making," Washington writes to Lincohi, April 15, 1780, i 
" it has been determined to march the Maryland division of 
about 2,000 men to your assistance ; but our situation here 
will not permit it to move before it is certain the enemy's 
detachment has sailed. Baron de Kalb will command this 
division. This reenforcement, in all probability, will be too 
late to have any influence upon the fall of Charleston ; but 
if that should fall, it may serve to check the progress of the 
British troops, and prevent their getting entire possession of 
the State. If they succeed against Charleston, there is much 
reason to be '.ieve the Southern States will become the prin- 
cipal theatre of the war." 

It having been ascertained that the hostile detachment 
had sailed from New York on the Yth of April, the Mary- 
land division broke their camp at Morristown on the 16th, 
and marched, in the first instance, to Philadelphia.®'^ Here 
Kalb superintended their equipment, and sent the infantry, 
numbering about 1,400 men, to Head of Elk (now Elkton), 
the northernmost point of Chesapeake Bay, where they em- i 
barked on the 3d of May for Petersburg, Virginia, while the / 
artillery, with the baggage and ammunition, proceeded south 
by land. 

" The providing the troops under my command," Kalb 
says in a letter to Washington from Philadelphia, on May 
12, 1780, " with every necessary for their march, has been 
attended with many difficulties and delays which it was not 



196 LIFE OF 



KALB. 



in my power to remove as soon as I could have wished ; and, 
therefore, I was not able to give a satisfactory account to 
your Excellency before now. 

" The Board of War have fixed upon Richmond as the 
place of rendezvous for the whole. The two brigades em- 
barked at the Head of Elk, the artillery, ammunition, and 
baggage proceeded by land. I shall set out to-morrow 
morning. I should have done it many days ago had I not 
been detained by the Board of War and of the Treasury. 
I should have been happy to see the Marquis de Lafayette, 
but would not lose a moment in going on. 

" From Richmond I will write to your Excellency the 
situation of the troops, the number of recruits joined on the 
march, and the measures I shall take to march with most 
expedition." 

Kalb himself left Philadelphia the following day, May 
13th, was detained two days at Annapolis, waiting for mon- 
eys to be paid by the treasurer of the State of Maryland, and 
arrived at Richmond on the 22d. Finding that Governor 
Jefferson had removed the rendezvous of the troops twenty- 
three miles southward to Petersburg, Kalb went there on the 
next day. Here the last transports of his division had just 
arrived, and he was kept busy night and day, contending 
with innumerable difficulties, and obliged to deny himself 
all rest until the troops could be hurried into marching 
order. 

" How gladly," writes Kalb from Petersburg, May 29, 
to his wife and his friend Holtzendorff, '' would I have tar- 
ried a few days in Philadelphia, to await the arrival of the 
Marquis de Lafayette, announced in your last letters. I had 
hundreds and hundreds of questions to ask him, and would 



LIFE OF KALB. 197 

have beeu glad to have chatted with him for some hoars ; 
but it was impossible to postpone my departure even a sin- 
gle day, as my troops were already on the march for this 
place, and as the fate of Charleston evidently depends upon 
the succor to be brought by me. It is to be hoped that I 
shall come in time, but I cannot be there before the end of 
June. Everything seems to have conspired against me and 
the interests of the service. Come what may, hoAvever, I will 
not have the blame of any delay laid at my door. I have 
under my orders the troops of Maryland and Delaware, Lee's 
corps, and a regiment of artillery wuth twelve pieces. I have 
been promised further reenforcements of militia from Virginia 
and North Carolina ; but such is the dilatory manner in which 
all things are done here, that I cannot depend upon them, 
much less wait for them. To-morrow and next day my 
troops, divided into three brigades, will take up their line 
of march, provided always the long-promised wagons are 
forthcoming. In spite of the haste with which I shall move, 
it is very possible that the fate of Charleston will have been 
decided before my arrival. For, although the city has long 
been threatened with a siege, and the enemy was in close 
proximity for a long time before he could complete the in- 
vestment, although, thereibre, there was the largest abun- 
dance of time to stock it with supplies, yet I fear this essen- 
tial matter has been entirely overlooked, or has received the 
necessary attention only when it was too late.'' 

The State of Virginia did not furnish the promised wagons, 
or left them unprovided longer than had been represented. 
Suffolk County bound itself for forty wagons, and Richmond 
for twelve, while the remainder w^ere to be procured in 
Peter.sburg. June arrived, how^ever, before a few of the 



198 LIFE O:^ KALB. 

wagons came straggling in. For this reason Kalb could not 
despatch the first brigade of his little corps before the first of 
June. The other wagons came so sparingly, that he loa"ded 
those he had with the tents, and ordered the soldiers, not- 
withstanding the heat of the season, to carry their own bag- 
gage, and, to save further parley, started the second brigade 
on the sixth of June, while he brought up the rear with the 
third on the 8th. He took the route by way of Taylor's 
Ferry to Hillsborough and Salisbury. 

" I meet with no support, no integrity, and no virtue in 
the State of Virginia," Kalb writes about this time to his 
friend Dr. Phyle, of Philadelphia, "and place my sole reliance 
on the French fleet and army, which are coming to our re- 
lief. For my part, I expect a most toilsome campaign, having 
been detained much too long by the non-arrival of ray 
wagons." ^* Before setting out for the South, Kalb received 
the confirmation of his fears respecting the fate of Charleston. 
The modifications in his plans which this sad event made 
necessary, are explained in the following letter to the Boaid 
of War from Petersburg, June 6, 1780 : 

" I am this moment informed by Major Jamison," he writes, 
" vvho arrived from Georgetown, South Carolina, that Charles- 
ton capitulated on the 12th May, our garrison prisoners of 
war, the enemy advancing this side Georgetown, their forces 
in that quarter unknown, but that their army under Gen. 
Clinton was with a late reenforcement he received about 12,- 
000. No certainty where Gov. Rutledge is with the troops 
under his command, and have sent orders to the first brigade 
and artillery to halt where they are until I shall join with the 
second brigade. I suppose my letters will find them not far 
from Salisbury. There I will consider what steps to take, if a 



LIFE OF KALB. 199 

j unction with Gov. Rutledge may be expected, and whether 
there will be any prospect of obtaining militia from Virginia 
and North Carolina ; but even then the enemy will be still 
vastly superior in number. I am determined to be on the 
defensive until reenforcement, and further orders and direc- 
tions either from your Board, Congress, or the Commander- 
in-chief. By Major Jamison I also understand that Col. 
i^rmand's corps is in Wilmington. The State artillery of Vir- 
ginia moved from this place twenty-eight days ago by the 
same road I am m ;rching ; they are supposed to be actually 
about Camden or with Gov. Rutledge." * 

While the fall of Charleston had frustrated the main object 
of Kalb's mission, it by no means superseded the necessity of 
his march South ; on the contrary, the case had been foreseen 
and provided for by his instructions. As yet the enemy had 
not gained a footing anywhere in North or South Carolina, 
outside of Charleston. It was important to form a strong 
nucleus for the militia, to encourage and organize the Whigs, 
to repress the Tories, to harass the enemy in his contemplated 
advance, to cut off his supplies, and to injure him in every 
possible way. The State of Virginia, unarmed and helpless as 
it was, now awoke to its own interest sufficiently to do all in 
its power" toward facilitating Kalb's movements, and send- 
ing out his corps to the defence of the State frontier ; but, in 
consequence of the utter want of means, all the preparations 
made and assistance rendered were so meagre, so far below 
the most moderate estimates and expectations, that Kalb's 
advance was of the very slowest. It was not before the 20th 
of June that he reached the boundary of North Carolina. 
His first letter from this State is dated at Goshen, Grenville 
County, the 21st of June, and is addressed to his wife." 
* Literal Copy. 



200 LIFE OF KALB. 

" Here I am at last," he says, " considerably south, suffer- 
ing from intolerable heat, the worst of quarters, and the most 
voracious of insects of every hue and form. The most disa- 
greeable of the latter is what is commonly called the tick, a 
kind of strong black flea, which makes its way under the skin, 
and by its bite produces the most painful irritation and in- 
flammation, which lasts a number of days. My whole body is 
covered with these stings. I do not yet know whether the 
strength and the movements of the enemy, and the difficulty 
of feeding my little army, will permit me to advance two 
hundred miles further to the borders of this State. I have 
ordered several detachments to rendezvous to-morrow thirty- 
three miles from here, if a violent storm does not prevent us 
from effecting a junction. Of the violence of thunderstorms 
in this part of the world Europeans cannot form any idea."J^ 

The further southward the little corps penetrated, the 
more difficult the march became. With every mile travelled 
the supply of provisions and transportation diminished. At 
Hillsborough Kalb was compelled to lie idle a number of 
days, to give his exhausted soldiers an opportunity to rest 
and refresh themselves as far as possible. He was in hopes, 
also, of meeting at this place the promised militia of Virginia 
and North Carolina ; but the number that arrived was com 
paratively trifling. Hence he marched on in a southwesterly 
direction to Greenborough, until, on the 6th of July, he 
reached Wilcox's Iron Works, on Deep River, where he was 
again brought to a halt by want of provisions. 

"Since last giving you some account of myself at 
Goshen," says Kalb, writing to his wife on the 7th of July 
from his camp on Deep River,°® " I have had to make most 
fatiguing marches, endure much heat, and overcome great 



LIFE OF KALB. 201 

difficulties ; but am still far from the end. It is even possible 
that after having reached the goal assigned myself, I shall be 
compelled to retreat without striking a blow, for want of pro- 
visions. What a difference between warfare in this coun- 
try and in Europe ! They who do not know the former, 
know not what it is to contend against obstacles. I would 
fain be rid of my command, than which there can be noth- 
ing more annoying or difficult. My present position 
makes me doubly anxious to return to you as soon as pos- 
sible.'L? 

The State of North Carolina had not made the slightest 
arrangements for the subsistence of the Union troops, but 
devoted its attention exclusively to its own militia, many of 
whom, being of royalist sentiments, had to be forced into 
the service. Kalb's requisitions and remonstrances had no 
effect whatever upon the State executive. He was thus com- 
pelled to send out foraging parties, under discreet officers, 
to collect provisions at a season when very few harvests are 
garnered. A considerable part of the population were liv- 
ing upon the remnants of the last corn crop, and the next, 
though very promising, had not yet ripened. Hence, in 
spite of the most stringent orders to take but a part of the 
contents of each granary, many a farmer suffered severely. 
In this precarious condition the army continued for several 
days ; but as the stock of provisions in the vicinity of the 
camp was speedily exhausted, the alternative presented itself 
of either procuring them from a greater distance, or march- 
ing to where they were more plentiful. The former was im- 
practicable, as Kalb was totally without transportation ; he 
concluded, therefore, to resort to the latter expedient, after 
having first enlarged the beat of his foraging parties, directed 



202 LIFE OF KALB. 

a little magazine to be erected at Cox (or Wilcox's) Mills, 
and encamped in the neighborhood of Buffalo Ford. 

But all this was far from sufficient to provide the indis. 
pensable necessaries for his troops ; the little meat that could 
be provided was of half-starved cattle collected from the 
woods and bushes where it bad wintered. Inactivity, bad 
nourishment, and the difficulty of preserving discipline, have 
often proved fatal to troops, where no immediate danger is 
apprebended, and have been the i-uin of entire armies; but 
in this instance the assiduity of the officers, and the patience 
and fortitude of the rank and file, upheld the order and har- 
mony of the command, and even the ardor of the individual 
soldier." 

Kalb did not fail to report his condition to Congress, and 
to reiterate his solicitations with the executive of North 
Carolina. He had been amused with promises of abundant 
sujiplies, and of a strong reenforcement of North Carolina 
militia, which had then taken the field under the command 
of Major-General Caswell. But the supplies never came, 
and the commander of the militia, w^ho thirsted for personal 
distinction, employed his men in little expeditions against 
the seditious or discontented inhabitants, w^ho had taken 
refuge in the woods, swamps, and bushes, to escape from the 
service of their country. 

Kalb vainly requested General Caswell to join him, and 
found it useless to wait longer for supplies for his troops in a 
country where everything was being destroyed by the ma- 
rauding militia. He hesitated, therefore, whether to dis- 
credit Caswell's lamentations about scarcity of provisions, 
and form a junction with him, or to march higher up into the 
country, and endeavor to gain the fertile shores of the Yad- 



LIFE OF KALB. 203 

kiu. Before coming to a decision he was notified of the 
speedy arrival of General Gates, who, immediately after the 
intelligence of the surrender of Charleston, had been ap- 
pointed by Congress to succeed Lincoln as commander-in- 
chief of the Southern army."° 

In October, 1777, General Gates, as is well known, had 
captured the English general, Burgoyne, with his whole 
army, by which brilliant success, not so much his own merit 
as that of his predecessor. General Schuyler, he had suddenly 
achieved a wide-spread reputation. In consequence of this 
decisive victory he Avas regarded by the masses, who always 
judge by results, as one of the greatest generals, and looked 
upon himself as a military genius. Hairbrained, haughty, 
and conceited as he was, he ranked himself above Washing- 
ton and intrigued against hira, imbued other coxcombs and 
intriguers with an exalted idea of his merits and services, 
and even had a powerful party in Congress. Lincoln being 
a prisoner, it was the more important to appoint an imme- 
diate successor, as a new army could not be sent to the 
South. Kalb had had no opportunity of distinguishing him- 
self. He was rarely seen at the capital, took no trouble to 
obtain influential friends or patrons, and therefore, although 
his great experience and cool circumspection would have 
fitted him admirably for the leadership in that part of the 
scene of war, he was rarely or never mentioned as a candi- 
date for the succession to this highly-responsible post. Be- 
sides, there was, in the person of General Greene, an ofiicer 
of older rank and higher merit, who had the first claims to 
this distinction, and who was the choice of Washington for 
the position. But Congress had no sooner heard of the lall 
>f Charleston, with almost unbecoming haste, and without 



204 LIFE OF KALB. 

waiting for the proposals of the commander-in-chief, or tak- 
ing his opinion, they, on tlie 1:5th of June, 1780, appointed 
Gates to lead the Army of the South. It was supposed that 
the mere name of the conqueror of Saratoga would raise the 
drooping spirits, and that one so successful as Gates could 
not but prove a match for Lord Cornwallis. Gates was on 
his plantation in Virginia when he received the news of his 
appointment. He accepted it with thanks, and at once has- 
tened South, in the confident hope of achieving new tri- 
I umphs, and finishing the war at a blow. " Take care," ci'ied 
his old friend and fellow-intriguer, Charles Lee, at parting, 
" lest your Northern laurels turn to Southern willows." "^ 
But Gates did not take care. 

Kalb received the announcement of his appointment, 
through Gates himself, on the loth of July, at his camp on 
Deep River. We have seen by the letter to his wife above 
quoted, that under the circumstances in piomptly and cheer- 
fully surrendering the chief command into the hands of the 
new-comer, he acted not so much from a sense of resignation 
or self denial, as with a feeling of indescribable relief from 
almost insupportable responsibilities. Honor and renown 
were not to be acquired in North Carolina ; of this Kalb had 
Jong become convinced. Nothing was to be done except to 
evade the hostile forces, to avoid a decisive engagement, and, 
as far as possible, to amuse the enemy for months to come, 
while waiting for supports in way of troops, ammunition, and 
provisions ; and even then the small number of troops and 
the ill discipline of the militia made success highly question- 
able. 

" I am happy by your arrival," Kalb wr es July 16, 1780. 
from his camp on the Deep River to Gates,* " for I have strug- 
* Literal copy. 



LIFE OF KALB. 205 

gled with a good many difficulties for provisions ever since I 
arrived in this State ; and altho' I have put the troops on short 
allowance for bread, we cannot get even that ; no flour laid in, 
and no disposition made for any but what I have done by 
military authority ; no assistance from the legislative or exec- 
utive power ; and the greatest unwillingness in the people to 
part with anything. Of all this I will give you a more par- 
ticular account at your arrival. The design I had to move 
nearer the enemy to drive them from Pedee River, a plentiful 
country, has been defeated by the impossibility of subsisting 
on the road, and no immediate supplies to be depended on in 
the first instance after a difficult march. 

" I will prepare exact returns towards the time I shall have 
the pleasure of seeing you, of the regular troops of the de- 
partment, but I could hardly depend on any but the Maryland 
and Delaware regiments of my division, with a small number 
of artillerymen and Col. Armand's legion, and all those very 
much reduced by sickness, discharges, and desertion. This 
induced me to leave three pieces of artillery at Roanoke River 
and to send some six to Hillsborough, having kept eight, 
which I thought sufficient for so small an army. 

"I am to move towards Coxe's Mill higher up on Deep 
River, where I am to be joined by the N"orth Carolina militia 
under Major-general Caswell, of about 1,200. The Virginia 
militia are still at Hillsborough, as you will be informed there. 
You may also have met with a small party of Col. Buford's re- 
mains ; I wanted to keep them in the army, but wanting arms 
and clothing he insisted on marching them to Virginia, and 
promised me he would join in the beginning of July. I have 
not heard from him since. Col. Washington's and Col. White's 
regiments of horse are at Halifax, it is said, unfit for service. I 



206 LIFE OF'KALB. 

have wrote to them both several times to know their situations, 
but could not obtain an answer as yet ; there were two troopa 
of Virginia State light-horse under Major Nelson in so bad 
order in respect to horses, wanting saddles and every article 
of accoutrement, that I have sent them to Halifax to refit and 
recruit. 

'• Col. White has left 25 of his light-horse at Hillsborough, 
they might serve you for an escort ; if you order one from 
camp to meet you, let me be informed thereof in time. You 
will find the army in a few days at or near Coxe's Mill; your 
shortest road will be by Lindley's Mill, Cob Taxton, and 
Rocky River ; your wagons, if you have any, would go better 
by Chatham Court House ; your quarters will be marked near 
camp." 

" Yesterday I had the honor," Gates answers from Hills- 
borough, July 20, 1780, "to receive your obliging letter of 
the 16th instant, dated from your camp on Deep River. I am 
astonished at your distress and difficulties, and have ever 
since my arrival here upon last Tuesday been endeavoring to 
alleviate them. I have sent despatches to the Governor and 
Executive Council of this State, to Governor Jefferson of Vir- 
ginia, and to Congress ; in all these you may be satisfied I have 
endeavored to describe our real situation, so as that no mis- 
take may be enteriained upon that head. Enough has already 
been lost in a vain defence of Charleston; if more is sacri- 
ficed. I think the Southern States are undone, and this may 
go nearly to undo the rest. I think all my writing business 
will be finished to-day ; if so, I shall set out to-morrow for 
camp, and hope to be with you on Saturday. The troops as 
you mention for my escort here are without horses, and many 
of them sent by Capt. Gun to Halifax. I will acquaint you 



LIFE OF KALB. 207 

to-morrow the route I intend to come, and request an escort to 
meet me at a certain spot I will name." 

Gates only reached camp on the 25th of July. Kalb re- 
ceived him with studied courtesy, and with a salute of thir- 
teen guns. Gates was equally polite, confirmed all the stand- 
ing orders of his predecessor, but, to the greatest amazement 
of the latter, announced to the troops at his first review, that' 
they must expect to march at a moment's notice. He evi- 
dently wanted to distinguish himself by a quick and energetic 
advance, in contrast with the previous involuntary slowness 
of movement; but in point of fact his orders of July 26th, 
commanding the troops to march on the direct road for Cam- 
den on the following day, betrayed his total ignorance of the 
true state of affairs, and especially of the condition of the 
soldiers who had been but a single day in his charge. 

Kalb induced Colonel Williams, who had hitherto acted 
as his adjutant-general, and who was an old friend of Gates, 
to remonstrate with the latter on the hazard of the step he 
was about to take. Williams proved to him for that purpose 
that the district of country to be traversed was naturally 
sterile, full of sandy plains alternating with numerous swamps, 
and but very thinly settled. He strove to convince him that 
the desired stock of provisions and forage which had been 
collected on the banks of the streams crossing the route, had 
been already exhausted, or carried off by the enemy or by 
hordes of bandits, who, under the designation of Tories, had 
retreated before the persecutions of those who were called 
Whigs, and who, by incessant depredations, and by removing 
even the little remnant of provisions, could infellibly reduce 
his little army to the verge of starvation. On the other hand 
Williams represented to General Gates that by taking a more 



208 LIFE OF KALB. 

northwesterly direction, near where the Pedee loses the name 
of Yadkin, he would strike the town of Salisbury, lying in the 
midst of a fertile country, with a patriotic population. He 
further remarked that the latter route had been the choice 
of the most circumspect and efficient of the officers, with 
General Kalb at their head, partly because it promised the 
most abundant supply of all sorts of provisions, partly because 
in case of a reverse it offered the sick and wounded a secure 
asylum at Salisbury or Charlotte, as the militia of the coun- 
ties of Mecklenburg and Rowan, in which those towns are 
eituate, were devoted to the cause of independence; and 
finally because it was the most favorable locality for the erec- 
tion of the contemplated workshop for the repair of arms. In 
conclusion, Williams submitted to his commander, that the 
supplies coming from the North would find this the safest route 
to the camp ; that the ad van cage of taking the enemy's out- 
posts in the flank was not to be despised even when obtained 
at the expense of such a circuit ; and that the army itself might 
then advance upon the most important of these outposts at 
Camden with the Wateree on its right flank, and its friends 
in the rear. 

To give all these considerations the more weight with the 
commanding general, they had been drawn up in writing, and 
signed by the leading officers. On the representations of 
Williams, who presented this memoiial, Gates promised to 
convene all the stafi" officers for consultation at noon of the 
first day of the march ; but such was his infatuation that he 
refused to listen to their advice, and never even invited them 
to a conference.^"* 

The marching order accordingly remained in force. On 
the 27th of July the army broke camp and proceeded south- 



LIFE OF KALB. 209 

ward. The complaint that there were not provisions and forage 
for a single day, was disposed of with the remark that the 
wagons coming from the North, laden with provisions, par- 
ticularly rum, would come up with the army in two days at 
farthest. 



CHAPTEE XI. 

Camp Broken July 27, 1780. — March to the South. — Kalb in Command of 
A Division. — Povertt and Desolation of the Country to be Traversed. 
— The Soldiers Badly Clothed and Fed. — The Promised Supplies 
FAIL to Arrive. — Gates Expects Assistance from the State of North 
Carolina. — Is Disappointed. — Gates' Letter to Governor Nash. — 
Threatened Mutiny Among thk Troops. — Gates begins to Appreciate 
the Difficulties which Surround Him. — His Excuses. — Kalb in favor 
OF Taking the Road which Leads to the Right. — Gates Forms a 
Junction with the North Carolina Militia under Caswell. — Con- 
tentment of the Troops. — Negligence of the Militia. — Position of 
THE Enemy. — Rawdon and Cornwallis. — The Former takes a Posi- 
tion on Little Lynch Creek, Fifteen Miles North of Camden. — 
Strong Position op the Enemy. — Gates Makes no Attempt to Flank 
Him, but Turns Off to the Right. — Lord Rawdon Concentrates his 
Forces at Camden. — Gates Weakens Himself by Sending a Detach- 
ment TO Sumter. — His Army on the Eve of the Battle. — Departure 
from Clermont for Camden. — Order of March. — Lord Cornwallis at 
Camden. — An American Council of War Resolves to Attack Him. — 
Strength of the American Forces. — Kalb is Opposed to a Battle. — 
Gates Elated.— He Regards Cornwallis as his Prisoner in Advance. 
— Cornwallis also Resolves to Give Battle. — His Motives. — Both 
Armies Break Camp on the 15th op August. — They Meet Half-way 
Between Clermont and Camden. — Skirmish of Outposts. — Gates Calls 
A Council of War. — Orders the Attack. — Kalb Silent. — His Reasons. 
— Advantages of the Ground on the Side ofthe British. — Their Or- 
der of Battle, and that of the Americans. — Advantages of the 
English Position. — Gates' Errors. — Cornwallis takes Prompt Advan- 
tage OF them. — He Orders the Attack. — Flight of the American 
Centre and Left Wing. — Gates Involved in it. — Kalb in Command on 
THE Field of Battle. — His Vigorous Resistance and Fall. — Bravery 
OF THE Maryland Division. — It is Overcome by Numbers, and Flies. 
Loss of the Americans.— Kalb Stripped to his Shibt. — He Bleeds 



LIFEOFKALB. 211 

FROM Eleven Wounds. — Cornwallis Recognizes Him. — He is Brought 
TO Camden. — Dies There on the 19th of August. — His Last Letter 
to his Soldiers. — His Funeral. — Testimony of Gates and Washing- 
ton. — Congress Resolves to Erect a Monument to Kalb at Annapo- 
lis. — Its Inscription.— The Resolution Never Executed. 

nnHE march of the little army, which, for want of horses, 
^ was even compelled to leave behind two of its eight 
field-pieces at Deep River, took the direction of Buffalo Ford 
and the enemy's advanced posts on Lynch Creek, whence it 
proceeded directly toward Camden in South Carolina, where 
Lord Rawdon was then posted. Gates hoped to induce him 
to retreat without firing a gun, and in that case to follow 
him up to Charleston itself. 

Kalb was again in command of his division of the " Grand 
Army," as the force of about three thousand men was called 
by the commanding general in the orders of the day of July 
26th. Cotton's Farm was reached on the 28th of July, and 
Kimborough's on the 29th. On the 30th and 31st the march 
was interrupted by a terrific thunderstorm. The land traversed 
was poor and desolate, hardly reclaimed from its natural 
condition, and rather worse even than the gloomy descriptions 
which had been made of it. The first rude eftbrts at civiliza- 
tion and culture which appeared here and there, had been 
either abandoned by their owners or plundered by their 
neighbors. All men had fled this wilderness, many of them 
to join some of the numerous bands of adventurers who 
held out promises of protection to their adherents until the 
anxiously expected English soldiery should arrive. In conse- 
quence, the distress and misery of the troops increased from 
day to day. They were told that the banks of the Pedee 
were exceedingly fertile — and so they proved ; but the pre- 
ceding harvest was exhausted, and the green corn, though 



212 LIFE Of' KALB. 

fair and plentiful, not yet ripe enough to be eaten. Many of 
the soldiers, driven by hunger, cut the green ears, and 
boiled them with the meat of the half-starved cattle found in 
the woods. A meal of this sort was not unpalatable, but had 
the most destructive effect on the health of the troops. In 
the absence of bread, half-ripe peaches were also consumed, 
with similar results. The officers, aware of the danger of 
such nourishment taken without any salt, and with a trifling 
addition of lean meat, eat nothing but the latter, boiled or 
roasted. It occurred to some of them that the hair-powder 
which they carried would thicken the soup ; and they used 
it as food."^ The supplies of provisions and rum, promised 
by Gates on taking up the line of march, were, of course, not 
forthcoming; but the soldiers were again consoled and 
amused with a fresh instalment of splendid promises. The 
late storm, it was said, had detained the provision trains, but 
an abundance would shortly arrive, and the general would 
take every precaution to prevent a return of such privations. 
Kelying on this assurance, the soldiers bore up against hun- 
ger and want with patient resignation and unbroken forti- 
tude. 

The little army reached the Pedee on the second, and 
crossed it on the 4th of August at Mark's Ferry, where it 
formed a junction with the inconsiderable corps of Lieutenant- 
colonel Porterfield, an excellent officer. Gates' eyes were 
now being opened. He wrote to the Governor of North Caro- 
lina from this point, begging him for a speedy shipment of 
provisions, to save his troops from starvation. As if Kalb'a 
bitter experiences had not sufficed to convince a circumspect 
commander that the indolent executive of that State could not 
be depended on for anything whatever! Gates now suffered 



LIFE OF KALB 213 

severely for his gasconade ; but, unfortunately, his soldiers 
suffered even more than he did. His letter of August 3d, to 
Governor Nash, shows that all the fair promises he had made 
were based upon nothing but the simple-hearted assumption 
that the State of North Carolina would hasten to honor the 
requisition of a Federal general. 

"I had the honor to address your Excellency from Hills- 
borough, the 19th ult., by General Huger," Gates says in this 
letter, " but have as yet received no answer. The distress this 
army has suffered and still continues to suffer for want of 
provisions has perhaps destroyed the finest opportunity that 
could be presented of driving in the enemy's advanced posts, 
in all likelihood even unto Charleston, Lord Cornwallis is 
believed to be gone to Savannah, has weakened his main 
body at Camden, where Lord Rawdon commands, and with- 
drawn the troops from Augusta, Cheraw, and Anson Court 
House. I'm astonished that I have not intelligence of any 
flour coming to me from the interior part of tlie State. Your 
Excellency cannot believe this miserable country, already 
ravaged by the enemy and gleaned by the militia under the 
Generals Caswell and Rutherford, can afford a handful to me. 
I must believe, from your Excellency's letter in answer to 
mine from Richmond, that you had then done all you thought 
necessary to provide us. I am anxious that this letter should 
find your Excellency and the Executive Council at Hills- 
borough, exerting all your authority and influence to supply 
your almost famished troops ! Flour and rum are the ariiclea 
the most in request in this climate, which bad water contrib- 
ute to render more unwholesome. Rum is as necessary to 
tlie health of the soldier as good food. Without these full 
hospitals and a thin army will be all your State or that of 



214 LIFE OF K ALB. 

Congress can depend on in the Southern Department. For 
my own part, I have never lost one moment in pressing the 
array forward, from the instant I joined them to this moment ; 
and when I can do more it shall be done. Depend not, sir, 
upon commissaries. They will deceive you. Depend only 
upon honest men of sound Whig principles, and whose s6uls 
are superior to sordid gain. General Stevens and the Virginia 
militia is halted at Buffalo Ford, fifty miles in my rear, and 
cannot proceed for want of provisions. General Rutherford's 
division have tents. I hope those I Avrote for to your Excel- 
lency are in a fair way to be sent forward. I march to- 
morrow at daybreak." 

Neither supplies nor reenforcements came, and yet Gates 
could not remain where he was, and was compelled to ad- 
vance. He rair^'ied first to Deep Creek, where he arrived 
on the 6th o." August, and rested until the 1th. The men 
w^ere again quieted with the prospect of an abundance of 
provisions at May's Mill, and induced by these representations 
to obey the order of march with alacrity ; but, being again 
disappointed, and almost dead with hunger, their patience 
threatened at last to forsake them. They began to straggle, 
to steal, and to plunder. Even those who remained in the 
ranks looked dark and scowling, and a mutiny, which would 
have produced the most deplorable consequences, was on the 
point of breaking out, when the oflacers, mingling with the 
men, and reasoning with them, succeeded in silencing the 
murmurs for which there was, unfortunately, but too much 
foundation. They showed their own empty canteens and 
haversacks, and convinced the privates that the sufferings of 
all were equal, exhorted them to bear up under the hardships 
of the hour, and promised that if the expected supplies did 



LIFE OF KALB. 215 

not very soon arrive, foraging parties should be sent out by 
every corps in all directions, to collect what little com might 
still be stored in the country, and bring it to the mill. 

By great good fortune, it happened that, immediately 
after this occurrence, a little stock of corn was brought into 
the camp. The mill began to grind, and in a few hours the 
soldiers were served with a meal such as they had long fore- 
gone. This sudden turn of affairs restored the composure 
of the men, and they conceived fresh hopes for the future. 
Not so the officers, who, at their own request, had been last 
served with rations. However, it was useless to complain to 
the commanding general, as no one could advise him how to 
extricate himself at a blow from the dilemma. Nevertheless 
he was informed of what took place in the camp, and was 
aware of the critical state of feeling among the troops. He 
now began to appreciate the difficulties pressing upon him, 
and, sensible of the responsibility incurred, he declared to 
Colonel Williams, who since the 6th of August had acted as 
adjutant-general in place of Major Armstrong, who was ill, 
that he had been in a measure compelled to take the route he 
had adopted. General Caswell, he proceeded to explain, had 
evaded every order, both of Kalb and of Gates, to unite his 
militia with the regular army, being evidently vain of his 
independent command, and bent upon some enterprise flat- 
tering to his personal ambition. He, Gates, would like to 
see him soundly whipped, were it not that a defeat would 
scatter his militia and leave the regulars without reenforce- 
ments. Gates therefore considered it indispensable to coun- 
teract the recklessness of Caswell, and to save him from 
destruction, particularly as he commanded the only body of 
militia that had been raised in the Carolinas. In this design 



216 LIFE 0¥ KALB. 

the commanding general declared himself confirmed by the 
supposition that Caswell, in spite of his protestations to the 
contrary, was well supplied with provisions, which, after a 
junction had been effected, would redound to the benefit of 
his own people. He further justified his advance by saying 
that after he had gone so far to meet the enemy, a retrograde 
movement would not only discourage the troops, but alienate 
the inhabitants, who had been induced by promises of obliv- 
ion and protection to renounce the English and adhere to the 
Union cause. 

Kalb and Williams vainly answered these arguments by 
representing the poverty of the country and the insincerity 
and faithlessness of the inhabitants. Kalb was particularly 
urgent to take the road on the right, which led through 
fertile settlements and offered abundance of forage. Gates 
adhered to his resolution, reverted to his former sell-delusions, 
and flattered the soldiers with the prospect of plentiful sup- 
plies which would be found on reaching the militia. The 
little corn found in the neighborhood of May's Mill was 
therefore collected, and the march on Camden continued. 

On the afternoon of the oth of August Gates received a 
letter from General Caswell, informing him of his intention 
to attack a fortified post of the enemy on Lynch's Creek, 
distant about fourteen miles from his camp. The com- 
mander-in-chief therefore immediately resumed his march, to 
effect a junction with the militia, and advanced with rapid 
pace. His troops suffered dreadfully, but the good example 
of the officers, who shared all their privations, repressed even 
the faintest signs of dissatisraction. On the 6th of August, 
however, Gates receive.d a second letter from Caswell, who 
had in the mean time discovered that the enemy threatened 



LIFE OF KALB. 217 

to attack him, and begged for speedy succor. This sudden 
transition from the offensive to the defensive is no less char- 
acteristic of Caswell's incompetence and want of military 
judgment, than his vanity is revealed by the opening of the 
letter, which was delivered by General W., one of his aids. 
Gates rode over that same afternoon into Caswell's camp — 
where he found the oiEcers at least living in abundance, and 
in all other respects an almost unparalleled state of confusion 
and disorder — and, having made the necessary arrangements, 
effected his junction with the North Carolina militia on the 
7th of August, at the crossroads distant about fifteen miles 
from Lynch's Creek.'" 

This event raised the spirits of the whole array, the mili- 
tia being reassured on the subject of a hostile attack, and 
the regulars, who forgot their privations and never dared to 
express the slightest dissatisfaction, being flattered at the 
confidence with which they inspired their new comrades. 
The officers, also, were on the best of terms, and General 
Caswell appeared to be entirely satisfied with the position 
assigned him, of third in command. He commanded the 
left wing, while Kalb was in charge of the right, composed 
of regulars. Having united about noon, the little army ad- 
vanced a few miles further in the direction of the hostile 
post on Lynch's Creek, and then encamped according to 
regulations. 

Colonel Williams, who was as solicitous for the welfare of 
the army as if he had been personally responsible for it, re- 
quested Lieutenant-colonel Ford, the officer of the day, to 
visit the guard with him at an unusual hour, in order to sat- 
isfy himself of the safety of the left wing. The guards and 
sentinels on the right wing were as vigilant as usual, and 
10 



218 LIFE OF KALB. 



saluted the round with that readiness which inspires a sense 
of security ; but on the left wing all was silent. The pa- 
trolling officers were not once challenged, rode by the guards 
without being stopped, and found their way unobstructed 
even to the tents of generals and staff officers, some of whom 
complained of this unnecessary disturbance at an hour so 
unusual among gentlemen. The officers of the preceding 
day were called, and guards and patrols arranged, to secure 
the camp against surprise.*"® 

On the morning of the 8th of August the enemy had 
disappeared. Under the guise of offensive movements, the 
officer commanding at Lynch's Creek had quitted this post, 
and skilfully withdrawn all his force unmolested to a much 
stronger position on Little Lynch's Creek. The latter was 
but a day's march from Camden, which, being the depot of 
provisions ibr the British troops scattered through the coun- 
try, was strongly fortified and well garrisoned under Lord 
Rawdon. That general had been, since the beginning of 
June, in command of the advanced posts of the army, which 
were destined to invade North Carolina, and only kept back 
until the autumn by the heat and the want of provisions, 
while Lord Cornwallis, who, since the return of Sir Henry 
Clinton, had the command-in-chief of the four thousand 
English troops scattered over the Southern provinces, had 
his headquarters at Charleston. On receiving the news of 
the approach of the Americans under Gates, Lord Rawdon 
marched from Camden to meet them, took up a well-fortified 
position at the distance of about fourteen miles from that 
place, and called in the detachments which were scattered 
over the country to support the foraging parties sent to scour 
the land in all directions.*"' 



LIFE OF KALB. 219 

Gates likewise directed bis march upon Little Lynch's 
Creek. His situation was already desperate; he had no 
choice. To turn to the left, toward Black River, was no 
longer justifiable, because then Camden, with its hostile 
garrison, would have been interposed between the army and 
tlie reenforcements expected from Virginia, and because the 
North Carolina refugees could not then have been attached 
to the army. To advance on the right, by way of the flour- 
ishing settlements on the Waxhaw, was now out of the 
question, because a march to these regions, two or three 
days' journey away from the road, would have resembled a 
flight, and frightened off" the volunteers from North Caro- 
lina. So the troops marched on without any fixed design 
being entertained, or any one knowing what was next to be 
done. Gates, however, began to reflect that it was danger- 
ous to approach an enemy of whose strength he had no cer- 
tain knowledge, and therefore ordered the heavy baggage, 
as well as a part of the women and children following the 
camp, back to Charlotte. On arriving at Little Lynch Creek 
he found the enemy posted south of the stream, on a height 
commanding the approaches. The road to it from the North 
led over a dam to the steep bank of a creek which wound 
its way through a deep, marshy bed, crossed by a wooden 
bridge. A broad marsh extended northward from the creek, 
which for miles could only be traversed in full view of the 
hostile works. The enemy showed no disposition to give up 
these advantages, without at least feeling the pulse of the 
assailants ; and Gates saw that he must take the bull by the 
horns if he would attack him in front. Had he possessed 
sufl[icient military shrewdness, he would have turned Lord 
Rawdon's Tank by a forced march up the creek, and entered 



220 LIFE OF KALB. 

Camden unopposed, where tlie royal troops had then not yet 
found time to unite.^'" Instead of this he diverged from the 
straight road to Camden, turned to the right, and ordered 
Colonel Hall, with a body of about three hundred men, after 
having covered the left wing until it should be safe from 
surprise, to take up the rear of the column. 

The Engh'sh discovered this manoeuvre in time, and thus 
had leisure to return to Camden unmolested on the Ilth of 
August, where they were joined by the British garrison hith- 
erto posted at Clermont, or Rugeley's Mills, on the northern 
road. Lord Rawdon concentrated all his forces at Camden, 
and fortified the place as strongly as possible, in hourly ex- 
pectation of the arrival of Lord Cornwallis from Charleston. 
He had learned from his spies that General Stevens, with a 
brigade of Virginia militia, was on the way to reenforce Gates, 
and that Marion below Camden and Sumter above were call- 
ing the inhabitants to arms ; in short, that in a few weeks the 
whole country would once more be arrayed against the 
British. He therefore suffered Gates to advance unmolested 
to Clermont, about thirteen miles north of Camden, where 
the Americans encamped on the 13th of August, and were 
joined on the 14th by the Virginia militia under Stevens. 

While Gates lay at Clermont, he received a despatch from 
Sumter requesting reenforcements for his little troop, to ena- 
ble him to intercept a train of goods on its way to Camden. 
Without a moment's hesitation the commanding general com- 
plied with this request, and, on the eve of a decisive struggle, 
when every man and every gun was certain to be needed, he 
detached Colonel Woolford, with four hundred men, one hun- 
dred of them being regulars, and two guns, to Sumter's assist- 
ance. This step admits of no explanation except the conjecture 



LIFE OF KALB. 221 

that Gates expected Rawdon to evacuate Camden also, and 
offer no resistance anywhere. But even on that supposition he 
was not justified in weakening himself in the face of the enemy, 
so as to be unprepared for contingencies. His course' was so 
much the more to be censured as the train would have been 
certain to fall into his hands at any rate if the anticipated 
battle should end in a victory, while, in case of defeat, it was 
equally sure to be recaptured from Sumter, even supposing 
the latter to be successful in taking it. This last was the con- 
tingency which actually occurred. Tarleton not only deprived 
Sumter of everything he had captured a mile from Camden, 
but also made prisoners of the greater part of Woolford's 
command. 

By the junction with the Virginians, the main army had 
increased its numbers, but by no means its strength. The 
expected supplies, also, were not forthcoming. The friends 
of the American cause living in the vicinity of Camden were 
so much surprised by the sudden ariival of Gates' troops, 
whose approach on such secluded roads they had regarded as 
an impossibility, that they had not made the slightest prepa- 
rations for the transportation of piovisions and forage. Thus 
the army lived from hand to mouth, without any stock of 
necessaries. Stevens brought nothing except a few West 
India productions, particularly m-olasses. This was issued to 
the soldiers as a stimulant, in place of rum or whiskey, in 
consideration of the excessive fatigues encountered during the 
last two days. The consequ; nee was that the men, who had 
subsisted almost exclusively ( n bread baked, or r.ither scorch- 
ed, of half green corn, were seized with a violent diarrhoea 
on the very eve of the battle, so that whole ranks were con- 
stantly broken up on the march to Camden. 



222 LIFE OF»KA.LB. 

On the 15th of August Gates sent the sick, the heavy 
baggage, and all the camp equipage that could be spared, to 
Washaw. This order was unfortunately not executed in time, 
so that the baggage wagons fell into the hands of the enemy 
after the loss of the battle. On the same day the order for 
the march to Camden was issued, which was to be taken up 
at ten o'clock in the evening in the following order : The 
advance was formed by a part of Armand's legion, then came 
the cavalry under Colonel Armand himself, whose right and 
left flanks were covered by Colonel Potterfield and Major 
Armstrong with the light infantry, marching in Indian file at 
a distance of two hundred yards from the road. They were 
followed in regular order by the First and Second Maryland 
brigades and the North Carolina and the Virginia division, 
each command being preceded by its artillery. The rear was 
again covered by volunteer cavalry. In case of an attack by 
the enemy's cavalry in front, the light infantry on either flank 
were directed to advance immediately, and open a heavy fire, 
under cover of which Colonel Armand was to resist the at- 
tack, and, if possible, to drive the enemy. The troops were 
commanded, on pain of death, to march in profound silence. 

On issuing this order. Gates was ignorant that Cornwallis 
bad in the mean time reenforced Lord Rawdon at Camden ; 
while, on the other hand, he regarded his own command as 
numbering seven thousand men. Adjutant-General Williams 
speedily undeceived him on this head, by showing, from the 
morning reports of the regiments, that on the morning of the 
15th of August but 3,052 men were fit for duty. But be- 
fore the app oach of Lord Cornwallis was known, and before 
the ti'ue state of the forces could be submitted. Gates had 
called a council of w^ar, and had laid his plan before them, 



LIFE OF KALB. 223 

based on the erroneous estimate of his numbers. It wouhl 
seem that no serious opposition was manifested, either because 
the majority of the officers considered the imaginary seven 
thousand men sufficient to overcome the British, or because 
the subordinate generals had satisfied themselves of the futil- 
ity of any objections, even if ever so well founded, to the pro 
posals of the commander-in-chief. Kalb alone was strenuously 
in favor of remaining at Clermont for the present, of still further 
fortifying this naturally strong position, which, according to 
the representations of Governor Nash, of North Carolina, a 
hundred men could have held against the whole British force, 
and of waiting for more definite information in regard to the 
enemy, who might possibly have been reenforced. He further 
showed that it would better suit the motley composition of 
the American army to act on the defensive, than to stake the 
result of the whole campaign on a single die, and adverted to 
the fact that the raw militia composing the bulk of the force, 
had never manoeuvred together, and therefore could not be 
expected to form column, and still less to execute even more 
difficult movements at night."* A consultation, however, 
w^as not Gates' object ; he merely wanted the sanction of his 
plan by the council, and caused it to be read without calling 
for a vote. In spite, therefore, of the ill feeling provoked by 
his conduct, which found expression after the close of the 
sitting, and in spite of the indignation of Colonel Armand, in 
being ordered, with his cavalry, to the front of an advancing 
column in the depth of night, a measure contrary to every 
principle of tactics, and in which that commander saw a piece 
of petty revenge and insult levelled at himself, the dispositions 
made by Gates were not departed from. The advice of the 
"^.veteran trained in the school of Marshals Saxe and Loewen- 



224 LIFE OF KALB. 

dal, and in the manifold experience of the Seven Years' War, 
remained unheard, and the army set out at the appointed 
hour, in order, as the commanding general fondly dreamed, 
to surprise the enemy at night and win an easy victory. 
According to Thatcher, Gates is said to have answered the 
remark of an officer, that possibly he might have Lord Corn- 
wallis opposed to him, by saying that the English general 
would not dare to meet him face to face. When another 
officer, shortly before the march upon Camden, observed that 
he was curious to know where he could dine to-morrow, the 
confident general returned, "Dine, sir? why where but in 
Camden ? I wouldn't give a pinch of snuff for the certainty 
of eating my beefsteak at Camden to-morrow, and seeing Lord 
Cornwallis my guest at the table." "'' 

Henry Lee says of the too self relying Gates, in his Memoirs 
of the South : " Calculating proudly on the weight of his 
name, he appears to have slighted the perquisites to victory, 
and to have hurried on to the field of battle with the impetu- 
osity of youth ; a memorable instance of the certain destruc- 
tion which awaits the soldier who does not know how to es- 
timate prosperity. If good fortune begets presumption, in- 
stead of increasing circumspection and diligence, it is the sure 
precursor of deep and bitter adversity." 

During these ill-considered preparations on the parfe^f the 
Americans, Lord Cornwallis and Rawdon had been far from 
idle. The latter, evidently alarmed for the safety of his main 
position by the apparent confidence of the American general, 
no sooner saw the enemy advancing upon Camden, than he 
wrote to his superior for assistance and support. These de- 
spatches induced Cornwallis to leave Charleston on the 10th 
of August, and to reach Camden with his troops on the even- 



LIFE OF KALB. 225 

mg of the 13th. He devoted the 14th to an examination of 
the position and strength of his forces, eight hundred of whom 
were lying in the hospital at Camden, and to inquiries into 
the condition and movements of the enemy, whose numbers 
were reported to him as running up to six thousand effectives. 
The English commander was shrewd enough to see that if he 
wished to preserve his communication with the sea, he must 
choose between retreating at once to Charleston or giving 
battle. Without a moment's hesitation he adopted the latter 
alternative.^'^ For he would have been compelled to leave 
his sick behind him at Camden, and to have abandoned the 
entire province just conquered, if he had returned to Charles- 
ton without an engagement, while a battle could have led to 
such a result only in the most unfavorable contingency. To 
this must be added the discontent and sedition manifested not 
only in the country travelled by Gates, but also in the dis- 
tricts east of the Santee and west of the Wateree, against the 
newly- restored English supremacy, and which threatened to 
ripen into open rebellion on the approach of the American 
army, as well as of the partisan leaders Sumter and Marion, 
Not a moment was, therefore, to be lost ; every delay could 
but increase the perils of the English army; a decisive en- 
counter must be risked. Nothing but a victory could extri- 
cate , him from his position. The more speedy the decision, 
the better the hope of success. Cornwallis, who reports the 
number of his own troops at 2,233 men, therefore resolved 
immediately to fall upon the enemy at his position near Cler- 
mont, or Rugeley's Mills, and gave the command to break 
camp at 10 o'clock p. m. of tlie 15th of August, in the hope 
of surprising him at daybreak of the 16th. His army took 
up their line of march iu the following order: The leading 
10* 



220 LIFE OB* KALB. 

division, under Lieutenant-colonel Webster, consisted, in the 
first instance, of an advance of twenty troopers and an equal 
number of legionaries, who rested upon a company of light 
infantry, followed by the Twenty-third and Thirtieth regiments. 
The centre, under Lord Rawdon's command, was formed by 
the Irish volunteers, the infantry legion, Hamilton's North Car- 
olina regiment, and Colonel Bryan's militin, composed of ref- 
ugees. The reserve consisted of two battalions of the 
Seventy-first, while the dragoons of the legion brought up the 
rear. Four field-pieces were with the divisions of the front 
and centre, and two with the reserve.^'* 

We have seen above that Gates struck his tents at the 
very same hour, also intending to surprise the English at 
Camden. Thus, by a singular coincidence, both these armies 
marched against each other at the same time, each ignorant 
of the designs of the other. The niglit was sultry, and the 
air as oppressively hot as in the daytime. The sky was clear 
and bright with stars. The sound of footsteps was stifled by 
the deep sand. As the entire distance between Clermont 
and Camden is but twelve or thirteen English miles, the 
British and Americans met half way at two o'clock in the 
morning, about half a mile north of Saunders' Creek. It was a 
glade in the pine forest, which fell off gently toward the 
creek, and was bounded on each flank by impenetrable marsh- 
es, leaving but little space for the formation of the troops. 
The Americans were apprised, by a pretty brisk skirmishing fire 
opened by the English legion, that they were within gunshot 
of the enemy. Some of Armand's troopers, wounded at the 
first discharge, fled hastily to the rear, and threw the whole 
legion into confusion. The latter fell back upon the front of 
the infantry, marching 1 ehiud them, not only imparting their 



LIFE OF KALB. 227 

own panic to the First Maryland brigade, but spreading uni- 
versal terror through the army. The light infantry, on the 
contrary, under Major Porterfield, who was mortally wound- 
ed on the occasion, gallantly bore the shock of the English 
cavahy, and repulsed them by a well-sustained fire. The 
enemy appeared to be no less astonished at this sudden 
collision than the Americans, and both parties, as if by com- 
mon consent, suspended hostilities until daybreak. On either 
side they availed themselves of the brief respite thus afforded, 
to ascertain the position and numbers of the enemy. On this 
occasion Adjutant-General Williams learned, for the first 
time, from some prisoners, that Lord Cornwallis himself was 
in command, that they numbered about three thousand, and 
that they were drawn up within five or six hundred yards of 
the American front. 

Gates could not conceal his amazement at this news, and, 
as soon as order had been restored in the infantry, and the 
army formed in line of battle, he caused the adjutant-general 
to convoke a council of war. When Williams brought the 
invitation to General Kalb, and informed him of what had 
taken place, the latter inquired, '* Well, did not the com- 
manding general immediately order a retreat?" The gen- 
erals and regimental commanders assembled in the rear of 
the American line, and received the unwelcome news. 
" You know our situation. What had we better do, gentle- 
men ? " cried Gates. For a moment no one answered ; then 
the brave but headlong Stevens broke the painful silence by 
exclaiming, " We must fight, gentlemen ; it is not yet too 
late ; we can do nothing else, we must fight ! " ^'* In such an 
exigency the counsel first given, be it good or bad, prudent 
or silly, is sure to be followed. The further it goes the less 



228 LIFE OEVKALE. 

will it be opposed, because in an assembly of mixed material, 
driven to an immediate decision, cool and quiet deliberation 
must always yield to the pressure of the moment, and reason 
give place to passion. It would seem as if each individual 
dreaded the responsibility, and, for that very reason, grasped 
the most extravagant opinion, if only uttered with an air 
of confidence, as if to show that he did not recoil at the 
most decided measures. Possibly, also, one or the other of 
the company may have considered courage the only requi- 
site of a good soldier; in short, Stevens' proposal met with 
no opposition, and Gates gave the fatal order to attack by 
saying, " We must fight, then ! Hasten to your posts, gen- 
tlemen." 

According to some accounts Kalb advised a retreat to 
Clermont, there to await the enemy's attack, which led to 
an altercation between him and Gates, in the course of 
which the latter expressed doubts of his courage j but neither 
internal nor external reasons support this story. Gates 
himself was a man of too much refinement to have used such 
insulting expressions, even if he had entertained such an 
opinion. And then it is in keeping with Kalb's turn of mind, 
after his first suggestion of a retreat had been disregarded, 
to resign himself to the dictates of his superior, and not ex- 
pend further solicitations on a general whos3 infatuation 
had shown itself quite incurable. Finally, we have the pos-' 
itive testimony of one who took an active part in all these 
transactions, in the narrative of Adjutant- General Williams, 
who expressly says that Kalb did not make the slightest 
objection to the proposal of General Stevens. There is no 
reason whatever to doubt the assertion of this most reliable 
witness, who repeatedly says that every word of his report, 



LIFE OF KALB. 229 

which was written immediately after the occurrences took 
place, that he was prepared to make oath to the most minute 
details. 

Be that as it may, the two armies were drawn up in line 
of battle before dawn. 

The advantage of the ground was clearly on the side of 
Lord Cornwallis, because, where he stood, the marshes to the 
right and left of the road approached each other most nearly, 
and not only protected both his flanks, but more than counter- 
vailed the numerical superiority of the enemy. He formed 
his right wing of the front division of Lieutenant-colonel 
Webster, consisting of the light infantry and the Twenty- 
third and Thirty-third regiments, and his left wing of Lord 
Rawdon's division, the composition of which has already been 
given. The two divisions ranged themselves on the right 
and left of the road and of each other, so that the Thirty- 
third, Webster's left wing, occupying the right of the road, 
and the L-ish Volunteer regiment, on Lord Kawdon's left, 
resting its left upon the road, together constituted the centre 
of the army. Two six-pounders and two three-pounders, 
under Lieutenant-colonel Macleod, of artillery, were posted 
in the front, and to the left of the road. The Seventy-first 
regiment was in the rear, its first battalion supporting the 
right, and its second the left wing. The cavalry under Tarle- 
ton was on the right of the road in the rear of both lines, 
and near the first battalion of the reserve, prepared, as circum- 
stance might dictate, to assail the enemy, or come to the 
rescue of their own infantry. 

On the American side Kalb was charged with the forma- 
tion of the line. He took the command of the right wing, 
consisting of the Second Maryland brigade under General 



2r.O LIFE OF 'K A LB. 

Gist, and the Delaware regiment, and which, like the English 
left, rested its flank on a deep morass. The North Carolina 
militia under General Caswell formed the centre, and the 
Virginia militia under General Stevens the left, while the First 
Maryland brigade under General Smallwood occupied the 
second line as a reserve. Two pieces of artillery were planted 
on Gist's right flank, and two on the right and two on the 
left of the centre. Armand's mounted legion were to have 
covered the right flank of the American force, but they had 
been seized by a panic and had fled disgracefully at the first 
attack in the night, so that they were of no account in the 
formation of the line and the subsequent events of the day. 
This want of cavalry w^as destined to be but too severely felt 
in the course of the action. 

The mere disposition of the two armies shows the advan- 
tages enjoyed in every respect by the British over the 
Americans. The front of Lord Cornwallis was strong not 
only in the personal valor of the troops, almost all belonging 
to the regular forces, and all of them veterans in comparison 
to the Americans, but also by the better distribution of the 
artillery ; above all its reserve, and especially the reserve 
under Tarleton, was more reliable and better posted. This 
compact and war-worn line was opposed by raw militia, who 
had never seen an enemy, and who regarded the English 
troops, excellent as they were, with even greater awe than 
the facts warranted. Gates committed the additional blunder 
of posting the First Maryland brigade in reserve, instead of 
using the raw militia for that purpose, and of stripping his 
left wing of artillery. By these defects, partly inherent in 
the character of his troops, and partly arising out of his own 
lack of judgment, he more than neutralized the advantages 



LIFE OF KALB. 231 

which would otherwise have accrued from the inferior nuin 
bers of Lord Cornwallis. Nay, not content with the errors 
already made, Gates, on seeing the position of the English 
in the morning, unexpectedly ordered a gap in the formation 
of the centre and right wing to be corrected, a measure 
doubly prejudicial in the presence of so well-disciplined a foe, 
and w^ith such unskilled forces of his own. 

Lord Cornwallis, indeed, was too experienced a commander 
no^ to avail himself of the chance thus brought under his 
very eyes. He hastened, on being apprised of this new 
mistake of his adversary, to his right wing, and personally 
ordered Colonel Webster to attack, sending the same com' 
mand to Lord Rawdon by an aid. 

Gates remained quiet, and seemed disposed to await the 
turn of events. His adjutant-general suggested that an im- 
mediate onset on the English while deploying, Avould inspire 
the militia with courage, and, if successful, exerciee no little 
influence on the result. " That's right," cried the commander, 
who had evidently been at a loss what to do, " let General 
Stevens attack on the left immediately." The latter advanced 
boldly at first, but found the enemy already drawn up in line 
of battle. Williams now endeavored to draw their fire at the 
greatest possible distance, in order to make it less fearful 
to the militia, and for that purpose requested permission to 
take forty or fifty volunteers from General Stevens, with 
w4iom he advanced, but without attaining his object. The 
right wing of the English under Webster advanced at this 
moment in closed ranks, with such noise, hurrahs, and impet- 
uosity upon the militia, just as the latter were changing their 
position, that they were thrown into confusion and seized by 
a panic, imder the influence of which they threw away their 



232 LIFE OB KALB. 

loaded pieces at the first fire of the English, and scattered in 
breathless flight. Prayers, entreaties, threats, and appeals 
to honor were alike unavailing. General Stevens vainly 
exhorted the fugitives to remember their bayonets; how 
could they remember them, when they had only received 
thera the day before, and were entirely unacquainted with 
their use? The Virginians involved the North Carolina 
militia in the same disgraceful rout. The officers unfortu- 
nately were without cavalry to enforce their objurgations, and 
bring the runaways to a stand. It was not, properly speak- 
ing, a tight, but rather a chase and scamper, so that before 
the real engagement had commenced, the entire American 
centre and left wing, comp( sing two-thirds of their force, 
had disappeared from the scene of action, almost without 
firing a shot. Four hundred men of Dixon's regiment alone 
stood their ground somewhat longer, and fired once or twice 
on the enemy. "° 

Gates, who had taken his position some six hundred 
paces in rear of the line, to overlook the contest, had been 
carried along by the flying militia, and had left the field 
under the pretext of " bringing the rascals back into line," 
so that the command-in-chief devolved upon Kalb. The 
morning was so close and foggy that the smoke did not even 
rise, but enveloped both armies in a cloud. This made it \ 
difficult to survey the field, and obtain a clear idea of the 
progress of the battle. In consequence of the fog Kalb long , 
remained ignorant of the flight of the left wing and centre ; | 
nevertheless he ordered up Smallwood with the reserve, and 
directed him to form a junction with Gist ; the two brigades, 
however, were not large enough to fill up the interval be- 
tween the marshes. While the First Maryland brigade moved 



LIFE OF KALB. 233 

P 

forward into line, the right wing under Kalb took up the 
unequal fight, and not only stood their ground, but success- 
fully repulsed the impetuous onslaught of the foe, so that 
the struggle gradually extended along the whole line, and 
victory trembled in the balance. To bring matters to a 
speedy issue, Kalb ordered a bayonet charge by the right 
wing under his command, drove the enemy, and had just 
made a number of prisoners, when the left wing, overpow- 
ered by numbers and outflanked, was forced to fall back. 
They soon rallied and renewed the contest, but were again 
repulsed, and again led into action. The two brigades, in 
consequence of losses, and in the heat of the engagement, 
which gradually degenerated into a hand-to-hand scuffle, 
were separated by an interval of some six hundred feet. 
This was the turning-point of the battle, which was hence- 
forth on the side of the English. Williams vainly endeav- 
ored to restore the connection. On reaching the right wing, 
he found the enemy just exchanging a heavy fire for a bay- 
onet charge. Kalb fought at the head of the Maryland 
second brigade. Three times he had advanced, and three times 
retreated before the force of numbers, but on the whole he 
maintained his advantage. His horse had been shot under 
him, a sabre stroke laid open his head. Jaquette, the adjutant 
of the Delaware regiment, hastily bandaged the wound with 
his scarf, and besought his general to retire from the conflict. 
Instead of heeding this request Kalb led his Marylanders to 
the charge on foot. Over heaps of dead they went forth and 
back ; his soldiers performed prodigies of valor, and con- 
tested every inch of ground. The enemy pressed upon them 
with ever increasing numbers, and forced them to give up 
the little advantage they had gained. The bloody fight was 



234 LIFE oi;kalb. 

hand to hand. At length Cornwallis, fearing to lose the 
advantages already gained, concentrated all his force upDii 
this point, and when, at his order, a portion of Tarleton's 
troopers fell upon the decimated flanks of the brave men of 
Maryland and Delaware, the last faint hope of maintaining 
possession of the field had vanished. All that could be done 
was to rescue the honor of the flag. And once more Kalb, 
at the head of his faithful few, rushed upon the enemy ; it 
was the last time that his powerful voice rang through the 
din of battle ; the last time that, his sword pointing to the 
foe, he cheered his men, and drew them on to follow him. 
As he advanced he was struck by several balls, and the 
blood poured from him in streams ; but he still had strength 
to cut down an English soldier, who had actually set a bay- 
onet on his breast. Yet his hour had come. He was recog- 
'nized by his epaulets. "The rebel general, the rebel gen- 
eral ! " was heard in the English ranks. Mortally struck, 
and bleeding from eleven wounds, he sank exhausted to the 
earth.' ^^ 

The fall of Kalb decided the fortunes of the day, for the 
Americans were now without a leader. True, the brigades of 
Gist and Smallwood formed once more, and advanced to the 
attack, rcpellmg another charge of the English ; but at this 
moment Cornwallis, incensed at this obstinate resistance, 
ordered his light cavalry to outflank the American left, and 
take them in the rear. This was done. The work begun by 
the bayonets of the British infantry w^as finished by the sa- 
bres of Tarleton's horse, who met with no resistance, owing 
to the w^ant of cavalry on the side of the Continentals. The 
remnants of the Maryland brigades were soon dissolved in 
headlong flight. Nothing but the marshes on each side of 



LIFE OF KALB. 235 

the battle-field afforded the fugitives some protection 
against the j^i^iJfsuit of Tarleton's dragoons. Not a bat- 
talion, not a company, preserved its formation. Gist, 
with about a hundred soldiers, alone retreated in something 
like order. Every command was broken up and scattered in 
the woods, and another victory so perfect as this was not 
achieved in the war of the revolution. Eight guns, two 
thousand stand of arms, twenty-two loads of ammunition, 
and one hundred and thirty baggage wagons, besides eighty 
thousand cartridges, fell into the hands of the victors, who 
reported their own loss at only sixty-eight killed, two hun- 
dred and forty-five wounded, and eleven missing — making a 
total of three hundred and twenty-four — while the adversa- 
ries estimate it at five hundred or even seven hundred killed."' 
The loss of the latter could not be ascertained, on account 
of the hasty flight of the militia. Cornwallis himself sup- 
poses it to have amounted to over a thousand in dead and 
wounded, besides eight hundred prisoners ; according to re- 
liable American accounts the regulars had six hundred and 
fifty killed and wounded, being more than a third of the j 
whole number; of the North Carolina militia a hundred bad 
fallen, and three hundred had been taken prisoners ; while 
the fleet-footed Virginians had wounded only, and no dead. 
The brave Delaware regiment was almost annihilated ; the ) 
I remnants barely sufficed to form a nucleus for two com- 
panies. Gist and Smallwood vainly endeavored to rally the 
militia on the road ; they were obliged to continue their 
flight with a handful of regulars. Gates, who, as we have 
seen above, had hastened from the field at the beginning of 
the fight, must have had a strong and swift charger, for he 
slept that same evening at Charlotte, which is distant sixty 
miles from Camden. 



2S6 LIFE t>F KALB. 

But let US leave the general who flies from his troops, and 
turn to the hero who fell fighting to the last. We left him 
at the head of his command, bleeding from eleven wounds. 

* / Scarcely had his adjutant Dubuysson, seen him fall, when 
he threw himself upon him, and cried imploringly to the rag- 
ing foe, " Spare and save the Baron de Kalb ! " The faithful 
aid received with his own body the sabre-cats intended for 
his superior. The British soldiers fell upon them both, seized 
the general, raised him to his feet, leaned him by his hands 
against a wagon, and stripped him to his shirt. As he stood 
in this miserable plight, with blood rushing from him in 
streams, CornwalHs came riding up with his suite."^ "I re- 
gret," he said to his helpless adversary, " to see you so badly 
wounded, but am glad to have defeated you." He immedi- 
ately ordered the prisoner to be properly cared for, and his 
wounds to be bandaged. From this moment the English 
treated the wounded man with that kindness and humanity 
which modern warfare vouchsafes to the conquered. 

Kalb struggled with death for three days, and died the 19th 
of August at Camden, whither he had been carried after the 
battle. Dubuysson, whose wounds turned out not to be se- 
rious, was with him during this time, and was assisted by the 
English officers in soothing the last moments of the dying hei'O. 
All his thoughts were with the brave soldiers and officers of 

I — his division. Immediately before his death he requested Du- 
buysson to express to them his tha'.i^ s for their valor, and to 
bid them an affectionate farewell. The letter to Generals 
Gist and Smallwood, in which the faithful adjutant executes 
this commission, is dated at Charlotte the 26th of August, 
1780, and reads as follows: ''" 

"Dear Generals: Having received wounds in the' action 
of the 16th instant, I was made prisoner, with the Honorable 



LIFE OF KALB. 237 

Major-General the Baron de Kalb, with whom I served as 
aide-de-camp and friend, and had an opportunity of attend- 
ing that great and good officer during the short time he lan- 
guished with eleven wounds, which proved mortal on the 
third day. 

"It is with particular pleasure I obey the baron's last 
commands, in presenting his most affectionate compliments 
to all the officers and men of his division. He expressed the 
greatest satisfaction in the testimony given by the British 
army, of the bravery of his troops ; and he was charmed with 
the firm opposition they made to superior force, when aban- 
doned by the rest of the army. The gallant behavior of the 
Delaware regiment and the companies of artillery attached 
to the brigades, afforded him infinite pleasure. And the ex- 
emplary conduct of the whole division gave him an endear- 
ing sense of the merits of the troops he had the honor to 
command. ' 

Kalb was buried by his victorious adversaries, among 
whom there were many free masons, with military and ma- 
sonic honors. Down to the year 1825 a solitary tree was all 
that marked his final resting-place. f 

Congress received, at the hands of Gates, the news of 
Kalb's heroic death. The stricken and humbled general spoke 
of his brave comrade with creditable candor, and warm ad- 
miration. 

" Too much honor cannot be paid by Congress to the memo- 
ry of the Baron de Kalb," he writes to 'Washington, in a letter 
of September 3, 1 780 ; " he was everything an excellent officer 
should be, and in the cause of the United States has sacrificed 
his life." " Here I must be permitted to say," Gates continues 
on September 3d, in a letter to the President of Congtess, 
" how much I think is due to the Baron de Kalb, and I am 



238 LIFE OF KALB. 

convinced Congress will declare to the world the high esti 
mation they have for his memory and services." ^" 

Upon this impartial testimony, and the concurrent judg- 
ment ofWashington, who declared that Kalbhad fully justi- 
fied the high opinion he had always entertained of him, and 
that his memory must ever be precious to a grateful country, 
Congress, on the 14th of October, 1780, resolved to commem- 
orate the glorious example given by General de Kalb to his 
troops, by erecting at Annapolis, the capital of the State 
whose division he had commanded, a monument, with this 
inscription : ^" 

" Sacred to the memory of the Baron de Kalb, Knight of 
the Royal Order of Military Merit, Brigadier of the Armies 
of France, and Major-General in the service of the United 
States of America. Having served with honor and reputation 
for three years, he gave at last a glorious proof of his attach- 
ment to the liberties of mankind and the cause of America, in 
the action near Camden, in the State of South Carolina, on 
the 16th of August, 1780, where, leading on the troops of the 
Maryland and Delaware lines against superiors numbers, and 
animating them by his example to deeds of valor, he was 
pierced with many wounds, and on the 19th following ex- 
p"red. in the 48th year of his age. The Congress of the 
United States of America in gratitude to his zeal, services, 
and merit, have erected tliis monument." 

The resolution was not executed. The cares of the day 
soon banished the memory of the fallen hero. The return of 
peace found an empty treasury, and the generation then en- 
tering into power had other interests. The matter gradually 
came to be forgotten, and KaWs national monument has 
never been erected (See Appendix, p. 326) 



CHAPTER XII. 

Kalb's Appearance and Character. — Habits and Education. — Marriage.— 
Children and Grandchildren. — Their Fates and Fortunes. — Their 
Claims on the United States, and how they were Disposed of. — Kalb's 
Grave at Camden. — Washington's Visit. — What He said about Kalb. 
— The Citizens of South Carolina Detkrmine upon the Erection of a 
Monument over the Grave. — Dedicated by Lafayette in 1825. — So- 
lemnities AND Orations. — Rktrospect of Kalb's Life. — The Product 
of Morbid Political Conditions.— His Extraction. — State of Public 
Affairs in Bayreuth. — Rehash of French Misrule. — Margrave Fred- 
eric. — Extraordinary Expenses. — Martial Tomfoolery and Kidnap^ 
ping. — English Subsidies. — Narrow Sphere. — Impossibility of Active 
Life for a Man of Kalb's turn of Mind. — Passage from Schiller's 
Play of " Kabale and Liebe." — The Division of Germany into Petty 
Principalities Excludes the Idea of National Pride. — Drives the 
Most Enegetic Men out of the Country. — Jean Paul. — French At 
solutism. — More Imposing thanthat of the Puny Principalities. — ad- 
mits OF Rivalry among the Gifted. — In France Kalb enjoys all the 
Immunities of a Native. — The Reason of the Liberality Exercised 
BY Absolute Governments in this Respect. — Absolutism Extinguishes 
ALL Differences of Nationality. — Comparison of the Moneyed Aris_ 

TOCRACY of the PrESENT DaY WITH THE ARISTOCRACY OF BiRTH OF THE 

Past Century. — Kalb and Lafayette. — The Last of the Soldiers of 
Fortune and thk Last of the Knights-Errant. — Their Aims. — Kalb 
not Actuated by Mean or VulGar Motives. — He Devotes Himself Un- 
reservedly* to THE Cause in which he has Enlisted. — Only two Immi- 
grant Generals fall in the Struggle. — Kalb and Montgomery. — The 
German saves the Honor of the American Arms. — Germany may 
Claim Him as her Own as well as France and America. — The Son of 
the Peasant op Huettendorp is not the Last among its Heroes. 

T7^ ALB'S exterior was highly prepossessing, his frame 
-■-•^ strong and well-built, and his air at once mild and 



240 LIFE OF KALB. 

dignified. A keen hazel eye, which beamed forth frankly and 
kindly from under a high forehead, a nose slightly aquiline, 
a mingled trait of good nature and shrewdness about the 
mouth, and a double chin of respectable proportions, stamped 
his mien with more of the reflective and calculating expres- 
sion of the diplomatist, than of the rigid, unbending type of 
the soldier. " In form and feature," — such is the testi- 
mony of his aide-de-camp, Nicholas Rogers, of Baltimore,'" 
— ^he was a perfect Ariovistus, more than six feet tall, and 
proof against the greatest hardships of his calling. He often 
made twenty or thirty miles a day on foot, and preferred 
walking to riding on horseback whenever he could." Owing 
to his mode of life his health was truly remarkable. To 
great temperance and caution he united extraordinary pa- 
tience. Suifering and privations he endured without a mur- 
mur, and could bear up for days under hunger and thii'st, 
heat and cold, without permitting a sigh to escape his lips. 
He slept as well upon his knapsack and under his cloak, as 
on a downy pillow ; in short, he possessed all the physical 
power and endurance essential to our conception of a hero. 
He was always considered younger than he really was. At 
his death Congress rated him at eight and forty, when in 
truth he was in his sixtieth year. 

During the American war Kalb usually rose before day- 
break, often at four o'clock in the morning, worked until 
nine, and then breakfasted on bread and water. After con- 
tinuing his labors till noon, he rode or walked out, went to 
headquarters, inquired the news of the day, and then dined. 
His meal consisted simply of soup, vegetables, and meat ; 
he drank* only water. The afternoon he devoted to the ser- 
vice or to writing letters. Owing to an affection of the eyes 



LIFE OF KALB. 241 

he rarely worked by candle-light, but retired to rest at an 
early hour, so as to be able to rise the earlier in the morning. 
Sharing with his subordinates all the hardships of the service, 
he could draw upon their zeal to almost any extent. All 
who knew him esteemed him for his unpretending affability ; 
his soldiers loved and revered him as a father. 

Kalb was single-hearted and honest. Endowed with 
sound common sense, and a judgment at once clear and 
strong, he had the happy faculty of habituating himself with- 
out constraint to the most unwonted circumstances, and com- 
bined untiring industry with a rigid sense of duty, very rare at 
that period, especially in France. By no means a genius, or 
a man of vast or comprehensive aims, he even shows occa- 
sional signs of that petty punctiliousness which has since 
received the appellation of old fogyism. Yet he was am- 
bitious, enterprising, and energetic ; and stopped at no 
sacrifice to achieve renown, distinction, or advancement. 
From his earliest youth he had had nothing save his mother 
wit to pit against the lions that beset his path ; and hence he 
had involuntarily imbibed a degree of habitual pliancy and 
subordination to the powers that be. For this reason he 
was not one of those who wbe make their demands in a 
haughty tone, and assert their will in disregard of all ob- 
stacles. His was a more calculating disposition, which 
apparently yielded to surrounding forces, in order, in point 
of fact, to control them the more effectively. This phase of 
his character is displayed most clearly in his intercourse with 
the Broglie brothers, who were his faithful friends and 
patrons, but who never bestowed their favor on any one who 
did not recognize their will as law. The courtly tone then 
in vogue among French officers is the key to this trait of 
11 



242 life(5fkalb. 

Kalb's character, but it must be said in his honor that he 
never resorted to base means to compass his ends. 

His best virtues, however, were his self-possession and 
his unvarying caution. As in his private affairs he considered 
every plan in all its bearings, before carrying it into execu- 
tion, as he meditated for days and weeks on the advantages 
and disadvantages of a contemplated investment or improve- 
ment of his estate, so he was conscientious and wary in his 
military movements, weighing in golden scales the chances 
of every undertaking, trusting nothing to chance, and enter- 
ing upon no venture which did not promise almost certain 
success. Thoroughly cognizant of the weak points of the 
American army, he was always for defensive measures, and 
frequently offended those who differed with him by the 
cogency of his reasoning, which was almost invariably borne 
out by the event. In the Seven Years' War his illustrious 
opponent, the Duke of Brunswick, had taught him to be on his 
guard ; and he did not hesitate to apply the results of that ex- 
perience to the American war, where he found himself pitted 
against two of the duke's best scholars. General Knyphausen 
and Lord Cornwallis. This full measure of caution in public 
matters found a counterpart in his private affairs in a degree 
of frugality which sometimes bordered closely on parsimony. 

Where Kalb acquired his education, is a question not to 
be answered from the data at command. That he was self- 
taught, is very perceptible in his writings ; yet his sphere of 
ideas was extensive and his mind versatile, and far in advance 
of the average of the military officers of his day. As was to 
be expected, he spoke and wrote French like a native. How 
far he was master of the German is not to be ascertained, be- 
cause not a line written in that language was to be found 



LIFE OF KALB. 243 

among his papers. His Eoglish style, though the use of the 
language gave him no difficulty, is not a little rugged. His 
handwriting is firm and smooth, and shows that he has writ- 
ten not a little. Even with the ancient classics he was famil- 
iar ; and his thorough knowledge of engineering and topogra- 
phy is proved by the length of time he practised these import- 
ant branches of the military art, and his position in the staff of 
the commander-in-chief. To this was added immense practi- 
cal experience ; for he had made his first campaigns under 
the Marshals Loewendal and Saxe, the first masters of their 
time; and had afterward extended the knowledge thus ac- 
quired, under Marshal Broglie, during the whole of the Seven 
Years' War. It may fairly be said, that of all the foreign 
oflacers who lent their swords to the struggling republic, not 
even Steuben excepted, Kalb was the most experienced, the 
most calculating, and the most circumspect commander. 

Kalb's marriage, as above remarked, was remarkably hap- 
py. His affection for his wife was at once earnest and j^layful, 
and a perfect reflex of the character of a true German, who 
seeks his chief pleasure and entire satisfaction, next to his 
participation in public affairs, in his wife and children. These 
beautiful family-ties appear to increased advantage when con- 
trasted with the debauched and heartless tone of the court 
and nobility, with the lasciviousness of a Dubarry and the 
crowned and highborn rakes, who could see nothing in an un- 
broken marriage vow bu^ a target for ribaldry. The most 
unlimited confidence continued to subsist between Kalb and 
his wife up to the moment of his death. She was his best of 
friends to whom he communicated everything that befell him, 
even to what would seem to be the most trivial occurrence. 
From America he wrote to her almost daily, His letters, 



244 LIFE OP 



K ALB. 



which often fill twenty or thirty pages, and which treat almost 
exclusively of personal and family matter, number ninety-one 
in a period of about forty months ; and most of them were 
written in duplicate and triplicate. While he is thus confiden- 
tial and explicit, she also loves to tell him of every household 
event at Paris and at Milon, to consult him as to alterations 
and improvements in houses and lands, and to enlarge upon 
the progress made by the children in their studies. Plans for 
the welfare of the boys, preparations for their entrance into 
the French army, the education of their daughter and her 
physical development — constitute the topics of extended and 
reiterated discussion in this correspondence between husband 
and wife. 

Kalb left three children.'" The eldest son, Frederic, was 
born the 18th of May, 1765, in Paris, educated at the famous 
military school of the German poet Pfefiel at Kolmar, and had 
hardly passed his sixteenth year before he entered the Ger- 
man regiment Salm-Salm, in the French service. At the 
breaking out of the revolution he joined the royalist refugees, 
and served as an officer in the corps formed by the Prince of 
Conde on the Rhine. The estates of the family having been 
confiscated in consequence of his emigration and taking up 
arms against his country,- he returned to France, and claimed 
to be restored to them on the ground that he had owed no 
allegiance, because a foreigner. Of this ingenious plea, com- 
ing from a native of France and the son of a French officer, 
the Convention manifested their appreciation by handing him 
over to the guillotine in 1793. He had inherited the Ameri- 
can order of the Cincinnati, established after the death of his 
father, and which, by the canons of the order, vested in the 
eldest son of a deceased member or officer who would have 
been entitled to membership, if living, 



LIFE OF KALB. 245 

KalVs second child was a daughter, Anna Maria Caroline, 
born May 25, 1767, who was married, on the 23d of October, 
1787, to John Lucas Geymueller, a Swiss captain in the ser- 
vice of France, outlived her husband and died as his widow 
January 24, 1829. Two sons were the issue of this marriage, 
the younger of whom, Lucas, born in 1792 and deceased in 
1846, left several children. 

The second son of our hero, Elie, was born March 9, 1769, 
and died September 7, 1835, at Milon laChapelle. The revo- 
lution found him in the French regiment Koyal Deuxponts, 
when he emigrated, and entered, as a private, the company 
formed by the refugee princes of the officers of the regiments 
Deuxponts and la Mark. On the utter failure of the royalist 
schemes he spent some time in Switzerland and among his 
connections in Franconia. About the close of the century we 
find him in Austria, where, under the name of Eliasvon Kell, 
he served, first in the Tyrolese rifles, and subsequently re- 
ceived a lieutenant's commission in the regiment Erbach. In 
1802 he resigned, and returned to France on the strength of 
the amnesty then granted.'" During the empire he took no 
part whatever in public affairs ; under the restoration he ac- 
cepted one or two parish offices, but otherwise lived in un- 
broken retirement during the rest of his days on the estate 
of Milon la Chapelle, which had been restored to him. His 
marriage, contracted the 8th of February, 1808, with Elise 
Signard, was blessed with two children, one of whom, a son 
named Theophile, died shortly after his birth in 1809, while 
the other, a daughter, Leonora, born Jime 11, 1811, on the 
26th of June, 1828, espoused the M«be|WS Raymond de YatlP- 
diere, Vicomte d'AJeac, and became the mother of five chil- 
dren. This granddaughter of Kalb, who still survives, owns 



246 LIFE OF KALB. 

and occupies the family homestead of Milon. The direct 
male line of the old hero is, it thus appears, extinct. 

Kalb and his widov/ lived in ease and affluence. In conse* 
quence of the French revolution, however, the family lost 
almost all their property; and although they subsequently re- 
covered their estate of Milon, they never regained, their former 
opulence. In 1784 and 1785 Madame de Kalb presented to 
Congress her claims for the arrears due her husband, but they 
were rejected on the ground of some omission in matters of 
form. In 1819 the heirs, having become impoverished, were 
naturally led to renew the application, petitioning the Fed- 
eral Government not only for the liquidation of the back pay 
of their grandfather, but also for the seven years' half-pay 
voted them by the resolution of Congress passed the 24th 
of August, 1780, as well as for the bounty in land coming to 
every revolutionary general. The last request was at once 
granted, and in 1822 the petitioners received a grant of par- 
cels Nos. 1, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 in the first quarter, and Nos. 
25, 30, 35, and 36 in the third quarter of the tenth township 
of the fourth range in the then military district of Ohio, and 
in the present counties of Holmes and Tuscarora. This 
tract, which at the present day would form a possession of 
immense value, was sold, a few years afterward, for State 
taxes which the heirs had failed to pay, and was entirely 
'^ lost to them, as they neglected to redeem it from the pur- 
chaser.'" Their other claims on Congress, on the other 
hand, were full thirty-six years in coming to a satisfactory 
conclusion. The books of the Secretary of War showed that 
at his death Kalb was entitled to $2,433.61 of undrawn pay. 
In the same books, however, he was charged with $226,000 
in paper money (or about |2,500 in gold), which he had re- 



LIFE OF KALB. 247 

ceived in May, 1780, before his march to the South, for the 
subsistence and clothing of the troops under his command. 
The vouchers for the proper disbursement of these funds were 
not forthcoming, as most of Kalb's papers and all his bag- 
gage had fallen into the hands of the English when he was 
killed. While no doubt was entertained of his having ex- 
pended the money in the public service, the absence of these 
documents obstructed the final settlement of the account for 
more than a generation." Thus it happened that, fully ac- 
knowledging the justice of the claims of Kalb's heirs, Con- 
gress nevertheless refused to liquidate them, and passed votes 
to this effect in the years 1819, 1821, 1836, and 1837.'" 
When it is considered that this body is almost entirely re- 
newed every two years, and that during the period referred 
to it was beset with hundreds of revolutionary claims of this 
character, this reluctance and circumspection is not without 
plausibility ; still, the case of Kalb was a highly exceptional 
one, and might well have been disposed of by a special 
enactment. Be that as it may, it was on the 8th of March, 
1842, that the House Committee on Revolutionary Claims 
made their report in favor of the heirs of Kalb, and fixed 
the sum to which they were entitled at $90,531.61, which 
they recommended to be paid with interest from 1819, the 
year in which the claim had been first presented. Even then 
the no n -concurrence of the Senate and the early close of the 
session prevented an adjustment, and twelve further years 
elapsed before the 6th of February, 1854, when Mr. Corwin 
again took up the report above mentioned, and adopted its 
suggestions. The House was unanimous in its favor. The 
bill reached the Senate on the 18th of December, 1854. 
Here a mistake of $24,513.85 was detected in favor of the 



248 LIFE OF KALB. 

claimants ; but, after deducting that amount, it was unani- 
mously adopted, and the sum of $66,099.76, without interest, 
was ordered to be paid in full of all demands/" The House 
concurred in the amendment, and the bill soon after received 
the signature of the President. It is but fair to record that 
the Senators and Representatives from Delaware and Mary- 
land, the two States whose troops had been under Kalb's 
command, and those of South Carolina, on the soil of which 
he had fallen, were especially solicitous about the final set- 
tlement of the claims of his heirs, and that the favorable re- 
sult attained is mainly due to their unceasing efforts. 

While the Congressional resolution of the 14th of Octo- 
ber, 1780, is still awaiting its realization, and while no steps 
were ever taken for the erection of the monument at Anna, 
polls, the State of South Carolina did not permit the year 1825 
to pass away without giving a fitting expression to its senti- 
ments of gratitude for the departed hero. 

As stated in the foregoing chapter, a tree was for years 
the only monument of the resting-place of Kalb's last re- 
mains. This spot was the most important memento of the 
Revolution of which Camden could boast, and travellers 
rarely failed to visit the grave. It is to be found in the 
grass plot opposite the Presbyterian Church in De Kalb 
Street. " So here lies the brave de Kalb," said Washington, 
when standing on this spot in the spring of 1791, "the gen- 
erous stranger who came from a distant land to fight our 
battles, and to water with his blood the tree of our liberty. 
Would to God he had lived to share with us its fruits!" 
And immediately before the same occasion,^'^^ when invited 
by the citizens of Camden to visit their town, he addressed 
them in the following words, which briefly and vigorously 



LIFE OF KALB. 249 

express Washington's opinion of our hero : " Your grateful 
remembrance of that excellent friend and gallant officer, the 
Baron de Kalb, does honor to the goodness of your hearts. 
With your regrets I mingle mine for his loss, and to your 
praise I join the tribute of my esteem for his memory." 

At the opening of the third decade of the present century, 
the inhabitants of Camden, and especially the Free Masons, 
of which fraternity Kalb had been a member, conceived the 
design of erecting a monument over his grave. The call 
issued by them met, throughout the State, with the most en- 
thusiastic reception and encouragement ; almost every citizen 
of South Carolina furnished his contribution. In 1825, al- 
though the requisite funds were not all collected, such pro- 
gress had been made that General Lafayette, thjn on his visit 
to the United States, could be requested to lay the corner- 
stone. 

The invitation was accepted with great alacrity. On the 
8th of March, 1825, he arrived at Camden, and was received 
with public solemnities. The addres 5es made by and to him 
are extant ; we extract the passages having special reference 
to Kalb, and to the inauguration of the monument.'^" 

" Your visit to Camden," General Nixon said, addressing 
himself to Lafayette, " excites subUme emotions ; we live over, 
in fancy, the scenes of its early history ; though no splendid 
edifices, no ' gorgeous temples,' no ' cloud-capped ' turrets meet 
your eye, still there are associations connected with it more 
imposing than them all. It is seated on classic ground. Its 
haunts are consecrated by the shades of heroes ; its plains 
honored by their dust. Monuments of the Revolution on all 
sides remind us of tlie deeds of our fathers. In its bosom 
reposes General de Kalb, yom- friend and companion in arms. 
11* 



250 LIFE of KALB. 

Inspired with a holy enthusiasm in the cause of freedom and 
mankind, he buffeted with you the storms of a perilous ocean. 
With you, he first touched American soil in Carolina, and 
doubly sanctified it by his Jirst visit and his last sigh ; and 
you are now, in your old age, to deposit a stone over his ashes, 
which will speak to coming years. I know, sir, it will afford 
you a melancholy pleasure to pause and drop a tear at the 
hero''s grave ; his spirit and your Washington's will commune 
with you there." 

Lafayette replied : " The congratulations of my friends 
on this happy visit to the State of South Carolina, cannot at 
any time or place be more affecting and honorable to me, than 
when offered by you, sir, in the name of the citizens of Cam- 
den and its vicinity, on this classic ground where, in several 
battles, my revolutionary brethren have fought and bled ; and 
where, even on unlucky days, actions have been performed 
which reflect the highest honor on the name of which we are 
so justly proud, the name of an Ame?'ican soldier. Such have 
been, sir, the able conduct as a commander, the noble fall as 
a patriot, of General de Kalb. Among my obligations to you, 
I gratefully acknowledge your kindness in associating me to 
the tribute paid to the memory of a friend, who, as you ob- 
serve, has been the early confidant and companion of ray de- 
votion to the American cause." 

The monument was inaugurated at noon of the succeeding 
day, the 9th of March, 1825. The procession was headed by 
volunteer soldiery, followed by the Kershaw Lodge of Free 
Masons of the town and vicinity. Then came the hearse 
with the ashes of Kalb. S!x revolutionary oflScers bore the 
pall ; a war horse was led after them. Genei-al Lafayette and 
suite, revolutionary soldiers, the civil authorities and some of 



LIFE OF KALB. 251 

tlie leading corporations of Camden, brought up the rear. At 
the grave the remains of Kalb were inearthed with Masonic 
ceremonies, after which A. Blanding, Esq., the Superintendent 
of Public Buildings, addressed General Lafayette in some 
brief remarks. 

"Your fellow-citizens," he saj^s, " who have contributed to 
the erection of this monument, request that you will place 
this stone over the remains of Major-general Baron de Kalb. 
To no hand can this office be so pi'operly assigned as to yours. 
You reached our shores together, brethren in arms and 
friendship, actuated by the same honorable and disinterested 
motives, and, as fellow-soldiers, supporting in the field the 
cause of freedom, when our country, struggling for independ- 
ence, most needed your aid. You, General, have survived 
to witness the result of these labors in the happiness and 
prosperity of a widely-extended republic, whose liberal 
institutions are supported by a people wise and virtuous 
enough for self-government, and who have thus confirmed 
the fond hopes of your hearts, that the blood of the rebellion 
should not be shed in vain. The General whose remains lie 
before us, was deprived of this enviable lot. He viewed in 
prospect only, the consequences of the conflict in which he 
so generously engaged, and nobly fell combating the op- 
pressors of our country. His life was the glorious sacrifice 
he offered to secure our republican institutions ; and this the 
manner in which we manifest our gratitude. May that union 
which has arisen out of the Revolution which you and he and 
your companions in arms achieved, be perpetual as the gran- 
ite which here commemorates his heroic virtues." 

To which the Geneial replied : 

*' The honor now bestowed upon me I receive with the 



252 LIFE OF KALB. 

mingled emotions of patriotism, gratitude, and friendship, 
and like other honorable duties which await me in the more 
northern part of the Union, I consider it as being conferred 
on the revolutionary army in the person of a surviving gen- 
eral officer. 

" In that army, sir, which offered a perfect assemblage of 
every civil and military virtue, Major general Baron de Kalb 
has acted a conspicuous part. His able conduct, undaunted 
valor, and glorious fall in the first battle of Camden, form one 
of the remarkable traits of our struggle for independence and 
freedom. He was cordially devoted to our American cause, 
and while his public and private qualities have endeared him 
to his contemporaries, here I remain to pay to his merits on 
this tomb, the tribute of an admiring witness, of an intimate 
companion, of a mourning friend." 

After this, Lafayette proceeded to lay the corner-stone 
of the monument, which was not completed for some time 
afterward. The base is formed of twenty-six massive blocks 
of granite. Twenty-four of them bear, respectively, the 
names of the twenty-four States then composing the Union ; 
the twenty-fifth has the inscription, " Foedus esto perpetu- 
um /^^ and the twenty-sixth covers the ashes of the de- 
ceased. The monument itself consists of an obelisk of 
white marble fifteen feet high. On the side which fronts 
south, on De Kalb street, are the words, " Here rest the 
remains of Baron de Kalb, a German by birth, a cosmopoli- 
tan in his principles." On the north side, the inscription is : 
" In gratitude for his zeal and services, the citizens of Cam- 
den have erected this monument." Fast side : " His love 
of Liberty induced him to leave the Old World to aid the 
citizens of the New in their struggle for Independence. 



LIFE OF KALB. 253 

His distinguished talent and many virtues weighed with 
Congress to appoint him Major- General in their revohition- 
ary army." West side : " He was second in command in 
the battle fought near Camden on the 16th of August, 1780, 
between the British and Americans, and there nobly fell, 
covered with wounds, while gallantly performing deeds of 
valor in rallying the friends and opposing the enemies of his 
adopted country." '^^ 

How far the facts bear out the poetical license of this 
epitaph, the reader will have decided for himself from the 
perusal of the foregoing pages. The question presents itself, 
however, whether the motives of Kalb's action, as we under- 
stand them, impair his title to the gratitude of the Amer- 
ican people, and to an honored niche in the fane of history ? 
The answer will best be made from another brief retrospect 
of his life, which, the more it is examined in the light of his 
time and of the ideas by which that time was guided, becomes 
more and more divested of its adventurous aspect, and stands 
disclosed as the product of morbid political conditions. 

Kalb was a native of a little German territory of the 
fifth magnitude. At the time of his birth the principality 
of Brandenburg-Bayreuth, containing about 1,456 square 
miles, and one hundred thousand inhabitants, did homage to 
the margrave George William. '^^ It yielded him a revenue 
of some two hundred thousand dollars, being about the 
annual income of a wealthy New York or London merchant. 
The rights of his subjects consisted, substantially, in the 
good pleasure of their lord and master, who, of course, 
looked to Versailles for his models, and revered the roues 
of the regency as his preceptors in the arts of living and of 
government. If anything distinguished the German prince 



254 LIFE OF "K ALB, 

from the Parisian noble, it was an occasional freak of glut- 
tony relieving the routine of super-refined luxuries. The 
species " homo " was never recognized as existing in any 
variety lower than that of the noble. The last but one of 
the margraves of Anspach-Bayreuth amused his mistress 
one day by shooting a chimney-sweep from his roof. She 
had expressed a curiosity to see a man come down head 
foremost. The widow of the murdered man appealed to his 
charity, and, in a moment of patriarchal benevolence, he 
indemnified her with the gift of two dollars.^^^ When the 
native gentry would not suffice, French adventurers and 
vagabonds were imported to bring the splendor of the court 
upon an equality with those of neighboring potentates. 
George William's successor, the margrave Frederic (1735 to 
1763), known as the husband of the great Frederic's sister, 
whose accession coincides with Kalb's departure from his 
dominions, is a choice specimen of the race of petty mag- 
nates then maltreating the German people.^^'' That the ex- 
penses of his household exceeded those of his brother-in-law, 
is of comparatively little moment, as the personal wants of 
the great king were never equal to the salary of the mar- 
grave's chief cook or principal dancer; but that the latter 
could equal, if not excel, all the apes of the Sybaritism of 
Louis XY., is of no little consequence in view of the num- 
ber of his competitors in Bavaria, the Palatinate, and Wur- 
temberg, and of the narrow limits of his domain. If, then, 
this contempt of all that was of native growth, and espe- 
cially of the native people, could thus display itself at a time 
when the victories of Frederic the Great had revived the 
self-respect of Germany, how degrading and demoralizing 
must have been the yoke on the necks of earlier generations ! 



LIFE OF KALB. 255 

And what more natural than that " the classes designed by 
Providence for servitude " should take flight from the body 
of this political and moral death ! 

That two hundred thousand dollars failed to defray the 
expenses incident to such a system of government, requires 
no demonstration. Extraordinary revenues had to be pro- 
vided. A favorite resource of this description was the prac- 
tice of hiring out the soldiers of the State — of which, in 
1730, Bayreuth had two regiments of infantry, a body of 
hussars, and a mounted body-guard — to the maritime pow- 
ers, Holland and England, upon a valuable consideration, 
which the phraseology of the times adorned with the title 
of a subsidy. The margraves of Bayreuth and Anspach en- 
gaged extensively in this lucrative business, which yielded 
them enormous sums for the support of their mistresses and 
dancers. Thus, during the American Revolution, England 
paid for the use of 1,644 men of Anspach and Bayreuth — 
including a young lieutenant named Gneisenau, afterward so 
famous as a Prussian field-marshal — the sum of £305,400, or 
about 61,527,000.^'' 

Had Kalb remained at home, his birth and lineage would 
have hopelessly excluded him from any career of military 
ambition higher than that of a corporal in one of the two 
regiments of his liege lord. Perhaps the latter would have 
sent him into foreign parts, like so many of his neighbors 
before and after him. Among the Anspach prisoners taken 
at Yorktown are two privates of the name of Kalb. Possi- 
bly they were nephews of the general ! Or, more probably, 
our hero would have imitated the foi-ward boys of whom the 
chamberlain tells Lady Milford, in Schiller's "Love and 
Intrigue," ''' that they stepped forward aud asked the colonel 



256 LIFE of'kalb. 

what the prince asked for a yoke of men. " But," the nar- 
rator continues, " our most gracious prince caused all the 
regiments to be paraded, and the blusterers to be shot. We 
heard the crack of the rifles, and saw their brains spattering 
on the pavement, and the whole army shouted, ' Hurrah for 
America ! ' " There is no poetical license here. In these 
matters his most serene highness was not at all to be trifled 
with ; every soldier who showed the slightest disposition to 
resist was handcufled and shot down on the spot. At all 
events, Kalb's sound sense and independent way of thinking 
would have kept him off" the list of those well-afiected 
soldiers of Bayreuth, who, after having mutinied on the 
march to America, and fired upon their officers, burst into 
tears at the sight of the potentate's august person, and 
marched quietly away."^ 

A State in duodecimo, like the Bayreuth of that period, 
where the individual has no attraction but that of brute force 
to fasten him to the body politic, where the inhabitants have 
not a single higher interest in common, and where the pay- 
ment of taxes and blind obedience are the sum of human 
life — a parish pound like this is not a country, and can never 
arouse the sentiment of patriotism or national honor. In 
such a spot, woe to the unfortunate who even dares to think ! 
His convictions will either involve him in hopeless collisions 
with the existing powers, or banish him from the threshold 
of his youth, to find elsewhere a scope for his energies. It 
is the same love of action, so shamefully fettered at home, 
which to this day drives so many of the flower of the Ger- 
man youth from the home of their fathers into foreign lands. 
The captivity of the German mind in the manacles of these 
petty despots is best depicted in the sublimated schoolmas- 



LIFE OF KALB. 257 

ters and sickly Titans of a fellow-countryman of Kalb's — 
Jean Paul, " the Jeremiah of his people." Kalb's rupture 
with Bayreuth, America has, at all events, no reason to de- 
plore. 

The French absolutism of the day was precisely identical 
in substance with that of Germany, its undoubted offspring ; 
but its exterior was more grand and imposing. Even at this 
time the same relation subsists between France and Ger- 
many as has obtained for two hundred years. The German 
of the present day enjoys a larger measure of personal and 
political liberty than the Frenchman under Louis Napoleon ; 
but while the national force of Germany is broken, and its 
living energies frittered away in consequence of the division 
into petty principalities, the French subject takes comfort at 
the thought that he is feared abroad, and that his country is 
the political arbiter of Europe. A State of thirty-six mil- 
lions of inhabitants of a single nationality finds work to do 
for every able man, be he of native or of foreign birth, be 
he trained in the arts of peace or in those of war. It rouses 
the ambition and energy of the individual, and provokes that 
keen encounter of the wits which precedes every great 
exploit and brilliant success. A pigmy kingdom, on the 
other hand, must not, for its own safety, suffer any greatness 
to flourish ; it is itself a caricature, an object of contempt 
and derision to all who are not themselves its victims. 

No sooner had Kalb made his way into the French ser- 
vice, than his chances of success and advancement were the 
same with those enjoyed by the natives of the country. 
The Bourbons even favored the foreign regiments, which, as 
we have seen in the second chapter, they drew from every 
nation, regarding them as affording, in case of need, a pro- 



258 LIFE OF KALB, 

tection against their own people — a forethought partly justi- 
fied at the breaking out of the French revolution. The 
absolutism of the eighteenth century made use of every 
instrument that came to its hand, never stopping to inquire 
into origin or character. Implicit obedience was the one 
thing needful; by whom that obedience was rendered was 
of no sort of consequence. The despotism of that century 
was, in this respect, less prejudiced and more liberal than 
most of the democratic republics of our day, because it 
never considered any interests except its own; while e\ery 
citizen of a republic is prone to imagine that it is in part the 
function of his Government to furnish him or his connections 
with office, and therefore to draw distinctions calculated to 
reduce the number of competitors. 

The idea of nationality had scarcely been conceived at 
that time ; the omnipotence of Government obliterated all 
varieties of language and extraction. The feudal traditions 
were melted in the whiter heat of centi-alized power. Hence 
arose the tendency of the foreign nobility to migrate to 
France, and the corresponding disposition of the French 
gentry to seek their fortunes abroad. 

Kalb accordingly did no more than to conform to the 
prevailing practice in going where the regular migratory 
current of his countrymen led the way ; indeed, he had a 
stronger inducement than most of them, as his birth cut off 
all hope of a successful career at home. To understand this 
state of things most thoroughly, the titled orders of the last 
century should be compared witli the heavy speculators of 
the present. The great merchant, also, has no country. He 
is as ready to remove from Hamburg to San Francisco, or 
from 'N'ew York to Shanghai and Calcutta, as a nobleman 



LIFE OF KALB. 259 

of that period was to quit the service of France or Sweden 
for that of the emperor or the sultan. Honor and renown 
are the pursuit of the one ; wealth and fortune, which confer 
power and influence, are the quest of the other. Titles and 
capital are at home wherever any conquest is to be made of 
lands or honors, money or power; they renounce their 
nationality without a pang, and sometimes even change their 
religion for the sake of preferment. Who, for instance, 
could name the country of the Rothschilds ? They are 
entirely denationalized. Many of these titled and untitled 
Argonauts return from their expeditions, while others take 
root in the soil of their adoption, and still others flit for a 
time from port to port before reaching their permanent des- 
tination. As every modern seaport has its pioneers of com- 
merce, who fail in engrafting themselves on the stock of the 
mercantile hierarchy, and who "never make anything," 
because lacking either in pliancy or discretion, but who, at 
the same time, are not to be extinguished by any amount 
of ill luck, and as these crusaders of profit, who are only at 
ease in the fiercest struggles of the market, often accident- 
ally become the lights of a new phase of the history of 
trade, or, at least, thrust the age a step in advance of where 
they found it, so the last century had its military adven- 
turers, refugees to-day and prime-ministers to-morrow, who 
conquered a throne at the sword's point only to exchange it 
for a debtor's prison; modern knights-errant, who subju- 
gated whole kingdoms, and, though they perished miserably, 
yet lived to inaugurate historical developments. Characters 
of this last description form the exception, not the rule ; but 
they spring from the : ommon origin of old tradition and 
immemorial custom, and bear the most marked impress of 



260 LIFE OF KALB. 

tbeir time. These paladins of the sword are the last de 
scendants of the knights- errant and condottieri of* the 
Middle Ages. This is the spirit that drives them over the 
world, not, as modern enthusiasts are apt to imagine, on 
a philosophical search for the best of governments, or with 
the design to devote their swords to the greatest good of 
the greatest number, but generally without any settled pur- 
pose, bent upon an active life and the acquisition of fame 
and fortune. 

It is the characteristic of great historical epochs, that no 
one can refuse to be concerned in them, that the individual is 
drawn, consciously or unconsciously, into the circle of their in- 
fluence, and forced, often contrary to his character and dis- 
position, to wear their livery. Kalb was such an offspring of 
his age, and his companion Lafayette was no less so. The 
same ship, named as if in commemoration of their common 
purpose, " la Vlctoire^ " which brought them to the new / 
world, brought the last of the condottieri, and the last of the - 
knighls-errant ; and without them, be it well observed, the \ 
triumph of the new system would have been impossible. \ 
Both mean to fight for the reiDublic, and both, though actu- 
ated by different motives, stake their lives on the issue. The 
younger voyager, the knight-errant, yearns for the fairest o ' 
the fair, the Dulcinea which the sentimentahsts of Europe 
then sought in the backwoods of America, under the names 
of Nature, Liberty, and the Rights of Man. The elder has 
more of reality in his projects, and is satisfied with the con- 
sciousness of action and enterprise, without much caring for 
its ultimate purpose. Neither of them attained the goal of 
his desires. The one was fortunate in gaining the friendship 
of the greatest and best of Americans, who, himself a model 



LIFE OF KALB. 261 

of all the finest graces of the Teutonic character, corrected 
the young Frenchman's volatile ambition, and enabled him to 
become " the hero of two continents." The other fell nobly- 
fighting on the field of the soldier's honor, happy in the 
accident which identified this honor with the interests of 
freedom. The struggling colonies were always of secondary 
importance to his ambition ; they furnished Kalb with the 
opportunity to display his devotion to the French king, from 
whom he expected more substantial reward and recognition 
of his efibrts m their behalf. In his eyes they were but the 
steps of the ladder of fame and distmction on which he de- 
sired to mount for the purpose of achieving in France still 
higher honors and benefit. 

Kalb was a soldier, and in every respect a man of honor 
in the military sense and spirit of his time. It' his motives 
have been variously misconstrued and distorted, the fault lies 
not with him, but with the unsound idealism of his contem- 
poraries. He had no predilection for the service of the foreign 
flag ; but he performed his whole and full duty as a man of 
honor and conscience. That the hope of pecuniary gain did 
not draw him across the ocean, is but too evident, when it is 
borne in mind that at that time the United States were strug- 
gling to avoid extinction, that the half of a general's pay was 
required to liquidate a barber's fee, while the price of a sad- 
dle horse absorbed the emoluments of five or ten years. Add 
to this the almost intolerable privations, the absence of all 
opportunity for distinction, and the jealous if not hostile de- 
portment of the native officers, and it must be conceded that 
a situation like this is to be endured only by men actuated by 
higher motives, whether of patriotism and ambition, or of 
manly pride and a sense of duty. 



262 LTFEOFKALB, 

Kalb belongs to the last-named class ; he was a military 
realist, and, as such, perfect. His faithfulness in the service, 
and his unbounded devotion to the cause, not only compares 
most favorably with the energy of the native revolutionary 
generals, but even excels them in iron fortitude. The War 
of Independence produced many able and patriotic leaders, 
men whose names will shine in imperishable glory to the end of 
all history ; but among the officers of the highest grade two 
only sealed their oaths of fealty with their blood. These two 
generals were foreigners. One of them, Richard Montgomery, 
the Irishman, stanched his youthful heroism on the snow-clad 
heights of Quebec, while the other, a veteran of sixty years, 
John Kalb, the German, breathed his last under the well-nigh 
tropical sun of South Carolina. He died for the honor of the 
American arms, fanning with his latest breath the valor of 
his men. If he could not restore the day, he rescued the fliir 
fame of the republican troops, shamefully abandoned by the 
commanding general. 

At this proud moment we take leave of our hero. In the 
national museum of France at Versailles his bust is preserved 
among those of the illustrious men of the country. Yet his 
virtues were of the Teutonic stamp ; the unbending energy, 
the faithfulness in the discharge of duty, and the dauntless 
courage which are manifested in all the vicissitudes of his 
career, were not the fruits of his foreign travel, but the in- 
gredients of his Franconican mother's milk. Germany has 
never advanced her claims on his renown, yet he has honored 
her name under the most difficult circumstances. South Car- 
olina has raised a monument to perpetuate his memory, but 
the great republic for whose independence he sacrificed his 
life, has almost forgotten his name and services. 



LIFE OF KALB. 263 

It was therefore a welcome and sacred duty he owed to 
his countrymen which induced the author to represent Kalb 
in the light of his time, and to revive his memory in the 
heart of the present generation. 



NOTES 



1. This version of Kalb's extraction is so diametricallj opposed to 
all the opinions hitherto received, that it will be necessary to state at 
large how the knowledge of the facts here stated was obtained. The 
MSS. received from Milon la Chapelle include two writings which 
mention Huettendorf as the birthplace of General Kalb. One of them 
is a certificate given the 22d of June, 1798, by the Prussian ambassador 
at Paris, M. Alphonse de Sandoz-Rollin, in which Elie Kalb, as a son 
of Major-general Kalb, who was born in Huettendorf, in the margra- 
viate of Bayreuth, is claimed as a Prussian subject (Bayreuth hav- 
ing been incorporated with that monarchy in December, 1791). The 
other is a copy of the marriage certificate of April 10, 1764, setting 
forth that " Jean de Kalh^ chevalier, fils dufeu Jean Leonard de Kalb^ 
8EIGNEUE DE HuETTENDORF, et de dame Marguerite Seitz, ne a Huet- 
tendorf dam le margraxiat de Bayreuth,'"' is married to Anna Eliza- 
beth Emilie van Ptobais at the Dutch embassy in Paris. These docu- 
ments making it certain that Huettendorf was the birthplace of the 
general, it only remained to ascertain the year of his birt!), which 
was sometimes given as 1717, and a^iain as 1732. I therefore com- 
municated these facts t) a friend of mine then living at Erlangen, 
near Huettendorf, Professor L. K. Aegidi, and requested him to have 
the date of Kalb's birth extracted from the church register. Mr. 
Aegidi soon discovored that Huettendorf neither had, nor ever had 
had, either a manor house or a church, and therefore referred to Pas- 
tor Pvecknagel, of Kirchen:iurach, which includes Huettendorf in its 
parochial limits, and, without making any mention of the Christian 
names of the parents, simply requested a statement of the birthday 
of John de Kalb, born at Huettendorf at some time between the 
years 1717 and 1732. Mr. Recknagel had the goodness to stite, in 
answer to this inquiry, that there never had been a baronial family 
of de Kalb in Huettendorf, but that there is still a family of wealthy 
yeomen there of the name of Kalb. At the time inquired of there 
had been a farmer, John Leonard Kalb, who, with his wife Margaret 
12 



266 NOTES. 

Seiz, had begotten three sons, one of whom, named John, was born 
■ the 29th of June, 1721. The correspondence of the given and sur- 
names, omitting only the "de" and the "seigneur," is perfect. 
Through the kindness of Dr. George Kapp, Superior Consistorial 
Councillor at Munich, I was subsequently enabled to direct a more 
detailed inquiry to Mr. Recknagel, which was answered to the effect 
that the memory of the grand-uncle who had become famous in 
America is still green in the family, and that a number of descend- 
ants of the general's brothers are stdl living near Huettendorf, such 
as C(mrad Kalb, fanner in Huettendorf, John Kalb, farmer in Gibigen- 
hof neir Nuremberg, John Knlb, landlord and master baker in Sta- 
deln near Nuremberg, and Elias Kalb, optician at Nuremberg. This 
welcome and unexpected disclosure of course induced me to redouble 
my exertions in ferreting out the origin of the gen.ral, whom I, too, 
liad previously taken for a baron. My friend, Aegidi, helped me to 
still another correspondence, wliich had been conducted by the gen- 
eral's widow and youngest son with their German kindred between 
the years 1781 and 1803. Mr. Philip Feust, student of law at Erlan- 
gen, had the goodness to furnish me with an exact copy of these 
twelve letters. The perusal of these papers must dissipate every re- 
maining doubt of Kalb's real extraction. That these letters are gen- 
uine is beyond a doubt ; because, in the first place, the family at 
Huettendorf had not the most remote interest in forging such a cor- 
respondenre, nor even, in all probability, the skill to fabricate it; 
secondly, they a'e corroborated by the Rev. Mr. Recknagel's official 
extracts from the parish records ; and, finally, all tlie names, dates, 
and persons mentioned in the letters tally with the facts and individ- 
uals set forth by the French and American sources of information at 
my disposal. The oldest of these letters are given in the Appendix, 
and speak for themselves. 

For the sake of completeness, it may be added that, after a long 
interruption, Kalb's youngest son, Elie or Elijah, resumed the corre- 
spondence with John Ge rge Kalb in March, 1801, from Kippenberg, 
near Brug, on the Mur. He had in the mean time assumed the name 
of Elias von Kell, and had become an ensign in the Austrian infantry 
regimt-nt of Count Erbach, a circumstance which is mentioned sev- 
eral time-:' in my French authorities. ^'■Seien Sie Tersiehert, mein liebster 
Herr Vetter,'''' he says, " dass %ch wahrea Anteil au dem Tod Ihrer 
Frau Sehlich nehme, oder Sie mucsaten mich Sekr misskennen, war Sie 
nicht die Schwester meines lieben vatters ? " " Be assured, my dearest 



NOTES. 267 

cousin, that I esympathize sincerely with you in the deatli of your 
sainted wife, or you would greatly misjudge me, was she not the sis- 
ter of my dear father? " 

On the 2d of June, 1802, Elie, now promoted to the rank of a 
lieutenant, informs "his true friend and cousin " John George Kalb, 
of Stadling, that his patrimony had been restored to him, and that he 
proposed to return to France by way of Stadling. This ends the 
correspondence between the two. Young Kalb returns to his home, 
Asiihout giving himself any further trouble about his cousin, who had 
befriended him in time of need. Early in the year 1808, John 
George Kalb inquired of Mr. Burkhardt, of Basle, a friend of the 
family, what had become of liis cousin. Buikhardt replies on the 24th 
of February, 1808, that Elie de Kalb had recently married, and was 
living quietly at Milon la Chapelle near Ohevreuse, a statement which 
agrees preci-^ely with the pedigree, on the faith of which the American 
Government paid Elie de Kalb's claims to his daughter. Mr. Burk- 
hardt concludes his letter to John George Kalb by saying, "In my 
opinion the silence of M. de Kalb toward those who so kindly 
took him by the hand in the year of the emigration, is not to be 
excused." 

Thus far the correspondence, which to me appears to place the 
identity of General Jeau Baron de Kalb with the peasant boy John 
Kalb, beyond all manner of doubt. The baronial family of the de 
Kalbs of Rheinheim had become extinct in the middle of the sixteenth 
century. Of the Barons Kalb of Kalbsrieth, but a single branch 
survived at the time of the birth of our hero. That he was not of 
their kith is manifest from the answer given by Henry de Kalb, after- 
ward the husband of Schiller's friend, Charlotte de Kalb nee 
Ostheimb, then a captain in the French regiment Deuxponts, to 
General Washington. This M. de Kalb, with his regiment, took part 
in the French expeJition to America, and distinguished himself at the 
siege of Yorktown. When presented to Washington, the first question 
of the latter was, whether he was connected with General de Kalb, 
who had recently fallen at Camden? Henry de Kalb answered that 
he did not know him, had never seen him, and never heard of him. 
(I have this fact from an oral communication by Miss Edda de Kalb, 
of Berlin, the daughter of Henry and Charlotte.) That the general 
never received a French patent of nobility, is proved by the circum- 
stance that he figures in the army lists as Jean de Kalb from the 
moment of liis first appearance as a young lieutenant in 1743. 



268 NO^-ES. 

2. This statement is inade by Kalb himself in a memorial handed 
to the Marquis de Monteynard the 19th of September, 1773, and to 
the Prince de Montbarey, the 31st of August, 1779. I find it, like all 
the subsequent data relative to his promotion in the army, unquali- 
fiedly confirmed by Kalb's Etat de service in the French ministry of 
war, the papers of which were examined for me through the kind 
intervention of M. Louis Tribert. 

3. Geschichte der Revolutionszeit, by Henry von Sybel, vol. I., 
p. 43. 

4. See Appendix XL, where the reader may advance his study of 
the manners and morals of the last century, by perusing some exiracts 
from letters of Kalb's colleagues and comrades on the subject dis- 
cussed in the text. 

5. Kalb's MS. papers (Nachtmann), from which the narrative at 
the close of the chapter is extracted. 

6. F. W. Barthold's "Die geschichtlichen Persoenlichkeiten in 
Jakob Casanova's Memoiren," Berlin, 1846, IL, 130, 131. Schlosser's 
" Geschichte des 18 Jahrhundeits," IT., 866. How much even the 
most highly-educated German princes, who fought on the side of 
their country, were imbued with French thoughts and feelings, 
appears from a remark made by the Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick, 
recorded in Boisgelin's manuscript notes of his conversations with 
Ferdinand, and quoted in both of the works above cited. 

" Mais^ Monsieur^ me disait le prince^ il n^y a pas d'officicr 

general en Allemagne^ quelque grand seigneur quHl soit^ qui ne se 
regarddt comme tres-heureux de pouvoir passer au service de France. 
Quel bonJieur defaire la guerre anec des Frangais et de vivre avee eux 
d Farit pendant lapaixf Ce n^est pas pour vous /aire un compli- 
ment^ ce n'est point parce que vous etes Frangais, que je vous conjure^ 
quHl n''y a pas unparmi nous, qui nefut enchante d.e servir en France.'''* 

7. Eistoire des Troupes etrangeres au service de France, par Eugene 
Fie0, commis principal aux archives du lyiinistere de la guerre^ 2 vol. 
Paris, 1854, I., pp. 268-271. The passage translated in the text is 
found in volume I., pp. 283-285. Also Schloezer's Correspondence 
Xiy., 103-107. The work first cited is particularly rich in materials 
on this topic, and is an unintentionnl but scathing denunciation of 
the petty sovereignty and seedy nubility of Germany during the 
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. No German not entirely 
callous to the honor of his country can read Fieff^'s book without 
burning shame and indignation. 






NOTES. 269 

8. Kalb's MS. papers (ISTachtmann). 

9. Archenliolz's History of tlie Seven Years' "War, I., 234. 

10. Kalb's MS. papers (Nachtmann). 

11. Ibidem. 

12. Ibidem. 

13. Ibidem. 

14. ^^Choiseul und seine Zeit^ von Kurd von Schloezer." Berlin, 1857, 
p. 122. 

15. Benjamin Franklin's Works, by Jared Sparks, VII., 357, where 
he writes from London, August 28, 1767, to his son William : 

" De Guerchy, the French ambassador, is gone home, and Mr. 
Durand is left Minister Plenipotentiary. He is extremely curious to 
inform himself in the affairs of America, pretends to have a great es- 
teem for me on account of the abilities shown in my examination, has 
desired to have all my political writings, invited me to dine with him, 
was very inquisitive, treated me with great civilities, makes me 
visits, &c." 

" I fancy that intriguing nation would like very well to meddle 
on occasion and blow up the coals between Britain and the colonies, 
but I hope we shall give them no opportunity." 

16. George Bancroft's History of the United States, VI., 25, and 
further on, at page 67. 

17. French archives (ministry of foreign affairs). From this docu- 
ment on to the Kalb's Boston letter of May 2, 1768, in the next chapter, 
copies in the possession of Mr. Bancroft, for the loan of which I am 
indebted to him. 

18. New York Gazette and Weekly Mercury, February 8, 1768, 
from which journal the account of the accident is taken. 

19. French archives (ministry of war), procured through the kind 
assistance of Mr. John Bigelow, piece 26. 

20. Thomas Jefferson, par Cornells de Witt, troisiime edition, Paris, 
1861, pp. 427, 446, and Mr. Bancroft's copies from the archives of the 
ministry of foreign affairs. 

21. French arciiives (ministry of war), pi^ce 55. 

22. Friedrich von Raumer, " Beitraege zur Neueren GescMcMe " 
(1763-1783), Leipsie, 1839, II., 163. 

23. Kalb's MS. papers (Kachtmann). 

24. BiograpMe Universelle, article " Brogliey The letter itself 
is appended. 

25. Bancroft's Hist .ry of the United States, vol. VIII., pp. 328- 



270 ncPes. 

344, where is to be found the first clear and authentic exposition of 
the matter treated in the text. It is the more important to keep 
these points in view, as the plain facts have been much distorted by 
the contradictory exaggerations of Deane, Beaumarchais, Lee, and 
du Coudrav, each of whom was anxious to appropriate the merit of 
having sent the munitions of war. 

26. Diplomatic Correspondence of the Revolution, bj Jared Sparks, 
vol. I., pp. 71, 95, 97, 98. 

27. English archives, S. P. 0. France, vol. 497. I am indebted 
for this letter to the kindness of Mr. Geo, Bancroft. Stormond, it is 
true, spells Kalb's name in the text " Colbe ; " but the identity of 
Kalb with Colbe is established, apart from all other considerations, 
by the fact that the latter is called a son-in-law of the well-known 
van Robnis, and that Holtzendorf is named as his companion. 

28. Interesting particulars relative to the failure of this expedition 
are found in ''''Beaumarchais etson temps^''^ par de Lom^nie, vol. III., 
pp. 150-160, which, by-the-bye, is cited in the text in the English 
translation by Henry S. Edwards, London, 1806. 

29. Diplomatic Correspondence, vol. L, p. 101. 

30. Papers in relation to the case of Silas Deane, Philadelphia, 
1855. 

31. 32. Kalb's MS. papers (Nachtmann). 

33. MS. memorial cf Dubois Martin, in the Maryland Historical 
Society in Baltimore, Portfolio No. 9. The statements of tliis in- 
teresting document are to be received with great caution, not only 
because they were made for the purpose of attracting the attention 
of Lafayette, at the time of his visit to this country in 1824, to the 
grandiloquent author, who was then living at Baltimore in straitened 
circumstances, but also because Dubois speaks of many things as an 
eye-witness, which he could only have learned from hearsay. 

34. This and the following sketch are based upon the letters of 
Kalb to his wife, which I have found in Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la 
Chapelle), and which are the more reliable as they narrate the little 
incidents of almost every day, without any thought of publication. 

35. Lafjiyette to Mrs. Gejmueller. See Appendix VIII. 

36. 37. Raumer, ubi sup. IIL, 231, 232, and 242. 

38. Washington's Writings, by Jared Sparks, Y., 449. 

39. Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la Chapelle), letter of June 20, 
1777. 

40. Washington State Department Papers, Volume No. 164, 
p. 306. 



NOTES. 271 

41. Life of Steuben, by Friedrich Knpp, New York, 1858, p. 527. 

42. Journals of Congress (Duulap's Edition), III., 276. 

43. Ibid., III., 279. 

44. Ibid., III., 823. 

45. Ibid., III., 394. 

46. Diplomatic Correspondence of the Revolution, I., 295. See 
Appendix IX. 

47. Memoirs of Segur, vol. I. 

48. Department of State Papers, Washington, vol. " de Kalb." 

49. Journals of Congress, III. The resolution is printed in the 
Appendix X. 

50. Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la Chapelle). 

51. Journals of Congress, III., Session of October 4th. See Ap- 
pendix X. 

52. Kalb to his wife, Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la Chapelle). 

53. Washington's Writings, V., p. 204. 

54. Ibid., pp. 157 and 167. 

55. This and the following letter from Kalb to Broglif, of the 
year 1777, are found in the French ministry of foreign affairs, where 
they were copied by Mr. George Bancroft. Mr. Bigelow afterward 
had the same letters copied for me in the ministry of war. Broglie 
acted evidently as a go-between with Vergennes, St. Germain, and 
Kalb, or his letters W(tuld hardly have got into the archives of the 
ministries of war and of foreign affairs. 

56. Communicated to me by the kindness of Mr. George H. Moore, 
from the Laurens Manuscript papers in the possession of Mr. Event 
Duyckinck. 

57. Lafayette's letter of acceptance to Congress, dated January 
81, 1778; found in the Washington State Department Manuscript 
Papers, vol. 156, pp. 7, etc. 

58. Gates' instructions are found at the same place, vol. 156, 
pp. 55 et seq. 

59. Kalb's MS. papei s (Milon la Chfipelle). 

60. Washington Irving's Life of Washington, IIL, 362. 

61. Gates' MS. papers, in the possession of the New York His- 
torical Society, vol. 12. 

62. Ibid., vol. 13. 

63. Revolutionary Correspondence, by Jared Sparks, vol. IL, 
pp. 93, 94. 

64. Life of Steuben, by Friedrich K:ipp, p. 139. 



272 xoT*ES. 

65. Washington's Writings, V., 360. 

66. The oath is found in the Army Returns, No. 37, Oaths of 
Allegiance, Q. 17, vol. I., No. 10, in the Washington State Depart- 
ment, and Revolutionary Orders of General Washington, by Henry 
Whiting, New York, 1844, p. 80. 

67. Letter from Kalb to Colonel Petti t, Assistant Quartermaster- 
general, dated September 22, 1778, kindly communicated to me in 
MS. by Dr. Sprague, of Albany. 

68. 69. Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la Chapelle) ; the letters 
are addressed to his wife. 

70. Washington's Writings, VI., p. 126. 

71. Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la Chapelle). 

72. Washington's Writings, VI., 268. 

73. 74, and 76. Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la Chapelle). 

75. Life of Steuben, by Friedrich Knpp, New York, 1859, pp. 228- 
231. 

77. Kalb here quotes Virgil without having the book at hand, and 
naturally commits a few slips of memory. If the reader desires fully 
to appreciate the beauty of this most poetical comparison, and its 
telling application to the position in which Kalb then found himself, 
let him turn to Virgil's JSneid, IIL, 254, 257, and VII., 110-116 and 
124-134, which contain the prophecies of Celaeno, and their fulfil- 
ment. 

78. Life of Frederick William von Steuben, by Friedrich Kapp, 
New York, 1859, p. 706. 

79. Lossing's Pictorial Field-Book of the Revolution, I., 317. 

80. Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la Chapelle), letters dated Decem- 
ber 7, 1779, January 1, 20, and 26, and February 12, 1780. 

81. Life of Steuben, by Friedrich Kapp, p. 239. 

82. Washington's Writings, by Sparks, VI., 413. 

83. Ibid., p. 487. 

84. Ibid., p. 416. 

85. See Revolutionary Correspondence, II., 404, 415. 

86. Ibid., IL, p. 430. " 

87. Washington's Writings, VI., 494. 

88. Revolutionary Correspondence, II., 450. 

89. Washington's Writing?, VII., 7. 

90. Ibid., p. 15. 

91. Ibid., p. 10. 

92. A Narrative of the Campaign of 1780, by Colonel O. H. Wil 



NOTES. 273 

liams, Adjutant- General. This journey of one of the ablest oflScers 
of the Revolution is printed as an appendix to Johnston's Sketches of 
the Life and Correspondence of Nathanael Greene, Charleston, 1822, 
vol. IV., pp. 485-507, and in the vahieless little biography of General 
Greene, by W. G. Simms, New York, 1850, pp. 359-383. It is one of 
the most important documents in the history of the southern cam- 
paign of General Kalb, whose adjutant "Williams then was. Both 
before and after this period Colonel Williams served as inspector ; he 
stood high in Kalb's confidence and esteem. I shall have frequent 
occasion to cite him hereafter, and in so doing, shall refer to the pag- 
ing in Simms' book, that being the more familiar and accessible of 
the two. 

93. Revolutionary Correspondence, II., 448. 

94. Diary of Christopher Marshall in Philadelphia (MS.), com- 
municated by "William Duane, Esq., of that city. 

95. Gates' MS. papers, vol. XVII. The letter here quoted also 
furnishes the data of Kalb's journey from Philadelphia to Petersburg. 

96. Revolutionary Correspondence, IL, 371. 

97. 98. Kalb's MS. papers (Milon la Chapelle). 
99, 100. Williams' Narrative, pp. 360, 361. 

101. Washington Trving's Life of Washington, 8vo edition, IV.. 75. 

102, 103. Gates' MS. papers, vol. 17. 

104. The recital from Gates' arrival in camp to the close of the 
chapter is literally extracted from Williams' Narrative. 

105. Ibid., and General Orders from July 26, 1780, to August 15, 
1780, MS. in possession of the Historical Society of Maryland in 
Baltimore, to which I am particularly indebted for precision in dates. 

106. Gates' MS. papers, vol. XVIL 

107. Williams, vhi svp. 2. General Gist's Order Book (in pos- 
session of the Historical Society of Maryland in Baltimore, where 
I examined it), and Henry Lee's Memoirs of the War in the Southern 
Department, Washington, 1827, p. 85. 

108. Williams, uhisup. 

109. Stedman's American War (8vo edition), 11., 226-228. 

110. History of the Campaign of 1780 and 1781 in the Southern 
Provinces of North America, by Lieut.-colonel Tarleton, London, 
1787, p. 99. 

111. Williams, vli siip., and Smith's Memoir of Baron de Kalb, 
p. 17. 

112. Thatcher's Military Journal, p. 206. 

12* 



274 NOTES. 

118. CorrespondeDce of Charles, First Marquis Cornwallis, by 
Charles Ross, in 3 vols., London, John Murray, 1859, L, pp. 55, 56, a 
compilation which, so far as American affairs are concerned, is ex- 
tiemely superficial and worthless. 

114. Stedman, uhi sup., p. 230, 231. 

115. Williams, uhisup. 

116. The account of the battle is founded mainly on the report 
of Williams, an eye-wimess, whose testimony, however, is confirmed 
by all the autliorities on both sides. 

117. Williams, Thatcher, and Garden relate the death of Kalb in 
the same terms ; it would seem, indeed, as if the latter two writers 
had copied from the former, who was an eye-witness. 

118. Correspondence of Ci)rnwallis, L, p. 56. 

119. Wheeler's History of ITorth Carolina, II., 154. Humphrey 
Hunter's account, tiiere followed, is adopted by me in so far only as 
he speaks as an eye-witness. What he gives from hearsay bears in- 
ternal marks of improbability, and is at variance with the statements 
of better observers. 

120. Maryland Journal, 1760, and J. Spear Smith's Memoir, al- 
ready cited, p. 26. 

121. Revolutionary Correspondence, Ilf., 76 ; Gates' MS. papers 
and Washington's Writings, VII., 239, 285. 

122. Resolutions and Acts of Congress, VL, 214 (Dunlap's Edi- 
tion), 

123. Colonel Nicholas Rogers, of Baltimore, to General Henry 
Lee. See Appendix XV., where the letter is printed in extenso. 

124. I am indebted for the first pedigree of the descendants of 
Kalb to J. Caroll Brent, Esq. of Washington, for many years the so- 
licitor of the family before Congress. The data there given are con- 
firmed by an essay written by the son of Elie de Kalb in 1829, and 
f«)und in the papers of Milon la Chapelle. The latest additions were 
furnished by Mr. J. Nachtmann, the established friend of the family. 
See Appendix, where the summary of the parents, brothers, and sis- 
ters of Kalb, furnished by the Rev. M. Recknagel, is also given. 

125. Statement by Elie de Kalb in his contemporary letter to his 
kinsman in Franconia (with which I have been favored by Philip 
Feust, Esq., student of law), borne out by the family papers at Milon 
la Chapelle. 

126. I am indebted for the particulars of this grant of lands to 
the kindness of Alfred Schuecking, Esq., of Washington, who at- 



NOTES. 275 

tempted, shortly before the year 1850, to recover the land for the 
family, which would have been an easy matter at that time, but 
which was frustrated by the heirs of Kalb themselves. 

127. The various committee reports on this matter were kindly 
presented to me by J. Caroll Brent, Esq. They are Report No. 184, 
31st Congress, first session, House of Representatives, March 28, 1850, 
and Report No. 193, 33d Congress, first session. House of Representa- 
tives, February 6, 1854. From them I have taken the statements of 
the text. 

128. Congressional Globe, Vol. XXX., 33d Congress, second ses- 
sion, pp. 68, 250, 320, 357. 

129. Washington's Writings, XII., p. 200. 

130. An accurate description of all the solemnities observed on 
this occasion, and the text of the speeches made by those who par- 
ticipated, is found in the " Voice of Masonry, and Tidings from the 
Craft," Vol. I., number 23, Louisville, Kentucky, December 15, 1859, 
to which Masonic periodical these facts were communicated by brotlier 
J. B. Kershaw, of Camden. I am under obligations to Dr. R. Bar- 
thelmes, of Brooklyn, who is collecting information relative to the 
German Freemasons in America, preparatory to the publication of a 
work on the subject, for the loan of this interesting number of that 
journal. 

131. B. J. Lossing's Pictorial Field- Book of the Revolution, II., 
468, where, also, a picture of the mcmument is given. 

132. Statistics of the Principality of Bayreuth, by G. W. A. Fik- 
enscher, Munich, 1811, p. 98 and 6. 

133. Oral and perfectly reliable communication by an old inhabi- 
tant of the castle of Bruckberg, made to the author in Sept., 1843. 

134. John Gottlob von Meyern, in his '• Nachrichten von derpoliti- 
schen und (Bkonomischen Verfussung des Fuerstenthums Bayreuth^ und 
der in diesem Jahrhundert verstorhenen MarJcgrafen von Brandenburg, 
Bayreuth, Gotha, 1780," pp. 20-25, thus describes this margrave and 
the doings of his court : " His naturally restless disposition had not 
beea pri)perly controlled in early life; the consequence of which was 
that he abandoned himself too much to his favorites and ministers, to 
frivolous amusements and expensive luxuries. His prime minister 
and special favorite, Ellrod, had the address to prevent his lord from 
being approached by anything capable of producing an unpleasant 
impression or causing uneasiness. He managed to provide the means 
of meeting the most urgent wants, and to silence the remonstrances 



276 NOTES. 

of the administrative and financial boards against the constant in- 
crease of the public debt. He was the son of a court chaplain of 
Bayreuth, and artfully raised himself from the position of governor 
of the pages to that of prime minister and count of the empire. The 
court dignitaries consisted of a chief marshal, a court marshal, a mas- 
ter of ceremonies, various gentlemen of the chamber and the court, 
French and German cooks, gentlemen of the bed-chamber, waiting- 
men, servants, footmen, and ruimers. Of German and foreign game- 
keepers, whippers-in and huntsmen, and the accompanying dogs and 
horses, there was more than abundance. A troup of the first Italian 
male and female singers, under the direction of eminent German per- 
foimers, discoursed the most exquisite vocal and instrumental music, 
and gave evidence of the cultivated taste of the margrave and his 
consort. In addition to this an academy of music was established 
for the benefit of the amateuis of the court and the capital. The 
French theatre was stocked with the best French actresses, and with 
dancers of all the nations of Europe, which, as well as the French 
cooks, were paid like ministers of state, and rapidly accumulated 
enough to purchase annuities and landed estates in France. Even 
the celebrated Pari^ian tragedian Lekain and the comedian Preville 
were called to Bayreuth, and munificently rewarded for their per- 
formances. The operatic and theatrical perf )rn!ances find the acade- 
my of music were open to every one free of charge. The margrave 
wanted others to share in all his pleasures. The enjoyment of his 
servants and subjects was his own. For the purpose of extending 
the same advantages to the lower portion of his dominions, he fre- 
quently removed his court to Erlangen." 

The annual expenses for ornamental architecture were 50,000 
florins. The money was disbursed by French and Italian architects. 
It was this department in which French noblemen such as Mirabean, 
Adh^mar, Montperny, Chatelet, and others made their livelihood and 
fortunes. "The extent of these operations, the academy, and the 
funds expended on the education of intelligent young men, were the 
menus of training skilled artists and meclianics, who, after the death 
of the margrave, were employed in the architectural department at 
Berlin and Potsdatn. Even a danseuse, Miss Heinlin, born and in- 
structed at Bayreuth, was the admiration of all the connoisseurs of 
London and Paris for years after the death of the margrave," 

135. Parliamentary Register, VIL, 44; transactions of February 
1, 1777 ; and Schloezer's " Staatsanseiger,^' vol. VI. 



NOTES. 211 

136. The character of Lady Milford, the " virtuons wanton," in 
Schiller's " Love and Intrigue," would seem to be a portrait of Lady 
Craven, who was the last mistress of Charles Alexander, the last 
margrave of Ansbach-Bayreuth, and who persuaded him to cede his 
principality to the Prussian crown. The second scene of the third 
act of that play is highly colored ; but that it is not untrue to the life 
appears from the succeeding note. 

137. In 1777 the "■ Hamburg Correspondent," then the leading 
political journal of Germany, published letters from two correspond- 
ents, which I can the less refrain from reproducing here, as they dis- 
play most manifestly the enthusiasm and devotion with which Kalb's 
countrymen followed the flag of their margrave to America. 

" On the 9th of this mouth," says a correspondent writing from 
Nuremberg, March 18, 1777, "certain German troops on their way to 
England broke out into a rebellion, which might have had serious 
consequences, if the sovereign had not, in his own person, re- 
paired to the ships that same evening, and restored order by tl:e in- 
fluence of his august presence. Nevertheless some violence had 
already been committed, one man having been kil'ed and five wound- 
ed, while thirty others had seized the opportunity of making their 
escape. The accompanying commissaries had been compelled to fly 
for their lives to a neighboring city." 

" On the 9th instant," says another correspondent of the same paper, 
writing from the lower Elbe under date of April 3, 1777, "the An- 
spach troops marched to the river's bank at Ochsenfurt, and were 
shipped. The narrow space in the vessels induced Colonel d'Eyb, 
who commanded the brigade, to lay by a little on the 10th, in order 
to make the soldiers a little more comfortable. He gave orders to 
cook the rations, and to be in readiness for marching. But as the 
boatmen had no orders to procure more bottoms, there was not time 
to redress this grievance, or prepare comfortable quarters for the sol- 
diers. They resigned themselves to their fate, however, and were 
only anxious soon to reach Wuerzbui-g. Idleness led them to drink, and 
then some of the grenadiers of the Bayreuth regiment Voitli began 
to murmur. They were joined by a number from the regiment Eyb, 
until at length all united in protesting that they had sworn to ?erve 
on land but not by water. A number now began to quit the ships 
and their flags, called to their comrades to follow them, and marched 
off into the mountains, avoiding Ochsenfurt. The oificers in vain en- 
deavored to bring them to order ; some of the ringleaders had already 



278 NO "PES. 

passed the vineyards. The riflemen posted there now fired, and shot 
a number of tlie deserters, and Eckert's grenadier company of the 
regiment Eyb set itself in motion, and undertook to recall the mu- 
tineers by friendly expostulations. At this moment-, however, the 
disturbance became general, and Captain d'Eckert of the grenadiers, 
and Lieutenants de Schoenfeldt, d'Adelsheim, and Kuhlau, who were 
joined by Lieutenant von Reitzenstein as a volunteer, were ordered 
to quell the riot, when they caused d'Eckert's grenadier company 
to march against the regiment Voith, and to prepare to load. This 
brought the brawlers to their senses, and they reentered their ranks, 
whereupon the grenadiers uncocked their pieces and returned. There 
being some diflficulty as to which companj"- should first march on 
board, it was resolved to march back on shore from Ochsenfurt to 
Ufifenheini. The grenadiers of the regiment Eyb, however, assured 
the brigadier that he would have no difficulty in reshipping them ; 
they were prepared to show themselves ready to execute the orders 
of their prince on all occasions. This was done; Sereni^siraus ar- 
rived at four o'clock next morning, and at his appearance the dutiful 
soldiers shed tears of joij, and quietly resumed their Triarchy 



The portrait of Kalb given in the frontispiece was engraved from 
a photograph taken by order of Mr. J. Nachtmann, and kindly pre- 
sented to the author, from an oil painting belonging to the general's 
grand-daughter, the Vicomtesse d'Ajzac. It represents our hero in 
the costume of the day, and was taken immediately before his de- 
parture for America. A portrait in oil, owned by the Maryland His- 
torical Society at Baltimore, corresponds with this engraving in the 
smallest particulars, and appears to have been copied from the same 
family picture, to which is also to be referred the copy to be found 
in Independence Hall at Philadelphia. 

The facsimile under the picture is taken from his letter written at 
Petersburg, May 29, 1780, which is given at large in the text, and 
w;is also presented to the author by Mr. J. Nachtmann. It is one of 
the latest writings found among his papers. 



APPENDIX. 



LETTERS FROM THE WIFE AND CHILDREN OF GENERAL 
KALB TO THEIR GERMAN KINSMEN. 

1. MADAME DE KALB A MR. GEORGE DE KALB A STADLING. 

Paris, le 20 Janvier, 1781. 

MoN Tres Cher FrSre: Je snis on ne pent pas etre plus sensible 
a la lettre tend re et consolante que vous m'avez fait I'honneur de 
m'ecrire. Li s sentimens que vous m'y marquez me penetrent du 
sincere regret de me voir si eloigneo d'une famille qui aurait fait ma 
plus graiide conpolation et qui, en me rappellant le meilleur des maris, 
aurait mele ses larmes a celles que je repands et ne cesserni de repan- 
dre tous les jours de ma vie. Mais me voyant privee de cette satis- 
faction je chercherai a m'en dedonimager en inspirant ii mes enfans 
les sentiments dont j'ai ete penetree pour la famille de mon mari. 
Quand ils seront en age et qulls pourront faire le voyage sans nuire 
a, leur education et a leur avancement, je les enverrai vous rendre 
leurs devoirs et vous prier de les presenter au reste de la famille . . 
J'ai joint a la lettre de mon fils un model de procura- 
tion qui m'est tres essentiel d'avoir pour I'arrangement de mes af- 
faires. J'attribue, mon tres cher frere, votre silence a cet egard sur 
ce qui je ne vous avais pas observe que cette procuration ne vous en- 
gage a rien parceque, suivant la coutume de Paris, les parens qui 
donnent lenrs avis pour la nomination d'un tuteur ou d'un subrogue 

tuteur, ne ?ont pas garants de sa gestion Je desirerais que 

vos affaires puissent vous permettre de venir ici. Dans cecas la pro- 
curation deviendrait inutile, vous verriez Ls chores par vous-nieme, 
et je vous prierais, d'accepter un logement chez moi, et de disposer de 
tout comme si vous etiez dans votre maison, II ne serait et question 
que pour lorsqne de trouver quelqu'un qui pM expliquer en allemand 
ce que vous n'entendez pas, ce qui je crois ne serait pas difficile. Ne 



280 APPEIiDIX. 

doutez pas, je vons prie, de la satisfaction quej'auraide voiis voir ac- 
cepter ma proposition, et de vousprouver de vive voix les sentiments 
distingues avec lesquels j'ai I'honneur d'etre votre tres humble et 
obeissante servante et soeur. 

Vatjeobais db Kalb. 

2. elijah kalb to me. siebenzaess, huckstek * at the new gate at 
nueemberg. 

Basle, April 6, 1793. 

My Veey Dear Cousin: I would be very unfeeling if I did not 
take all sorts of trouble to show you my gratitude. Unfortnnately, 
the German language is not familiar enough to me, in writing, for 
me to make use of it. But the great kindness with which you have 
requested me to write to you in Germany, and the fatherly affection 
which you have hitherto shown me, has given me a heart to try it. 
The certificate you procured for me has been sent at once to Paris ; 
but I do not yet know what effect it has had. As regards the amount 
which you had the goodness to disburse for me, my brother-in-law 
will send it to you by the same merchant who handed you my first 
letter. 

Pardon my bad writing, my dearest cousin ; but it is not to be 
pardoned, that one who is of German blood, and who has lived a 
long time in Germany, sliould not write better, I speak it as well 
as the French, but writing I have not used. I cannot sufficiently 
express to yon my gratitude and friendship, with which I have tlie 
honor to be, my dearest cousin, your most obedient servant, friend, 
and cousin. Elijah Kalb. 

For the better understanding of this letter, it should be remarked 
that Elie de Kalb, the general's youngest son, was at that time 
abroad as a penniless refugee, the estates of the family having been 
contiscated by the Convention. He omits the "• de " in his own name 
as well as in that of his relative. The certificate to which he alludes 
in an attestation of the authorities at Bayreuth, that General John 
Kalb was born at Huettendorf, and theref ire the subject of a Ger- 
man state, and that consequently his sons, the oldest of whom expired 
on the guillotine in October, 1793, could not be regarded as French- 

* The German word " Pfragner " is a Franconian provincialism, mean- 
ing a green-grocer, or a trader who deals in flour, peas, beans, and sucb 
articles. 



APPENDIX. 281 

men. This document, subsequently endorsed by the Prussian Am- 
bassador at Paris, is also referred to more than once in the French 
sources of information. 

3. ELIJAH KALB TO MR. SIEBENKAESS, HUCKSTER AT NUREMBERG. 

Basle, October 18, 1793. 

My Dearest Cousin : I have received your affectionate letter 
of the 12th of this month, and am really very sensible of the friend- 
'ship and interest you take in my painful and unfortunate lot. The 
certificates I have received and forwarded to Paris, but have not any 
answer. This silence on the part of my agent is not at all surprising, 
because all the letters sent out of France are opened, and if the 
slightest suspicion were entertained that he was writing to a refugee, 
it would cost him his head. To be sure I ought not to be considered 
a refugee, nor am I such, but in such a country and at such a time, 
when there is no order, no law, and no religion, innocence will 
always be in the wrong, until the Highest sliall pronounce the rights 
that belong to us in this world, or until He shall put an end to war 
and revolution. To all appearances we shall soon have peace. . . . 
I have found true kindred and friends, who had never known me, and 
who yet have shown me so much friendship. But be assured, also, 
that I shall i:ever forget it, and that I am impatiently waiting for 
the time when I shall be able to show you my gratitude in a better 
way. 

I wish I could send you the amount disbursed for me ; but at this 
moment it is impossible, because I have not had any thing sent to me 
from home lor a long time. . . Pardon me my bad pronunciation 
and wriiing. Honor me furthermore with your kind remembrance, 
and believe me that I fully appreciate it. My dearest cousin and 
friend. Your most sincere, most obedient friend and servant, 

Elijah Kalb. 

4. LUKE GEYMTJELLER (THE GENERAL's son-in-law) to JOHN GEORGE 

KALB. 

Basle, February 20, 1795. 

My Most Worthy and Dear Cousin : It was not without the 
greatest sensibility that we received the mournful news of the de- 
cease of our dear and worthy cousin at Huettendorf. My brother-in- 
law, my wife and myself, assure you for ever of our friendship, and beg 



282 appeITdix. 

you, ray dear cousin, to kiss your beloved wife and children heartily. 
My brother-in-law is much surprised to find that you have not 
received one of the last three letters he wrote you. You cannot 
conceive how much pain it gives my brother-in-law that you should 
have had the thought that he has forgotten you. He is far from 
having any such thoughts, and our dear cousin is certainly convinced 
of it. He will never forget the friendship you have extended to him, 
and still extend to him. Should he ever recover his property, it will 
be his first care to repay you, my dear friend, the money so kindly 
disbursed for him, with all possible gratitude. My wife and I also 
deeply feel what you have done for him, and beg for the continuance 
of your tenderness. We esteem ourselves fortunate in having such a 
kinsman ; it will be a real pleasure to hear often from you and your 
beloved family. . . My most worthy cousin, 

Your most obedient and most devoted cousin and friend, 

Geymueller. 

5. elijah kalb to john george kalb, 8tadling, near nuremberg. 

Basle, September 20, 1797. 

My Dearest Coitsin : With tearfnl eyes I take the pen to inform 
you of m.y hard, snd fate. But yon are probably already aware, that 
another new empollune has taken place at Paris, and the main pur- 
pose is not to return anything to any one whose name is on the list 
of refugee-^, whether it came there rightfully or wrongfully. I have 
had the honor of writing to you often, and have received no more 
answers. My dearest cousin, who always wrote me such affectionate 
letters of consolation, can he abandon me entirely, and no longer 
consider me his faithful friend and cousin? Oh no! the thouglit 
would be too dreadful. Honor me with a speedy reply, and be 
assured of my friendship and cousinly affection, with which I shall 
remain through life. Your most devoted cousin and friend, 

Elijah Kalb. 

6. luke geymueller to john george kalb. 

Paris, March 2, 1799. 

Most Honored Cousin: Yon are acquainted with the unfortunate 

plight of your cousin Elijah, which is really deplorable, so hmg as his 

case cannot be passed upon. To have his matters arranged he must 

have a voucher to prove that his father was a citizen in Huettendor^ 

11* 



APPENDIX. 283 

County Bayreuth, and was regarded as a citizen to the day of his 
death, as well as his children, that he was born there, the date of his 
birth, and the name and baptismal names of his parents ; this must 
not be omitted by any means. This certificate of citizenship must 
also be authenticated by the minister at the Franconian court. You 
see, my dear cousin, how much we need your assistance. 

7. ELIJAH KALB TO JOHN GEORGE KALB, STADLING. 

Basle, April 18, 1799. 

Dearest Cousin: You cannot imagine how dreadful it is for us 
to receive no answers from you to several letters. The writings 
which have cost you so much trouble and expense, are at Paris, 
under seal, as you know. Baron Hardenberg, the Prussian ambas- 
sador here, is willing to help me if I can show him in black and 
white that my sainted father was a Prussian, and to prove this he 
demands a certificate of baptism from the place where my father 
was born. Should it take more than a fortnight to send me the 
certificate of baptism, please have the goodness to give me the name 
of the village where he was born, but send the certificate on as soon 
as poi^sible, and be so kind as to let me know what my s linted grand- 
father was, and where he lived. "We recommend ourselves to the 
friendship of you and yours, and with much love to all our relations, 
etc., etc. 

II. 

1. MAJOR WURMSER (REGIMENT ALSAOE) TO KALB. 

Tool, Juin 8, 1751. 

Je puis vous repondre avec surety que le regiment a toujours eu 
coutume de fatre passer par les verges les filles de mauvaise vie et 
autres qui etaient dans le cas de le meriter. Le regiment ne c'est 
jamais oppose de prendre les verges, quand il est arrive de faire 
passer une fille par toute la parade d'uce garnison. Les caporaux et 
les grenadiers sont seuls dispenses de cette besogne. 

2. MAJOR DE HEIFTER TO KALB. 

CoLMAE, le 8 Juin, 1751. 

Le regiment ne passe jamais aucune fille par le^ verges. Si le cas 
s'en pr^sente, notre prevot les fait promener a la parade pendant une 



284 APPENDIX. 

heure, ou bien il les fait mettre sur ua cheval de bols, et 3i le fait est 
plus grave, il les fait fouetterpar la main du bQurreau. 

3. MAJOE LESLIE TO KALB. 

Maubeuge, le 13 Juin. 

Quand nous tronvons des filles dans les casernes, le regiment les 
fait passer par les verges. Mais dans aucun cas les grenadiers no 
passent personne par les verges. 

4. BARON DE VOLZ TO KALB. 

Cambray, le 12 Juin, 1751. 

" Pour r^pondre, Monsieur, a celle que vous m'avez fait I'honneur 
de m'ecrire le 5 de ce mois, I'usage est dans notre regiment, de faire 
passer les putains seulement dans les cas ci-enonces. Si des filles 
sont prises dans les chambrees des soldats du corps ou par des pa- 
trouilles que le corps aurait fait expr^s pour cela, le Regiment fuurnit 
seul le detachement pour passer ces filles par les verges. Mais si 
elles sont prises par des detachements ordonnes par TEtat niajor de 
la place ou par des soldats de garde ailleurs que dans des chambrees 
des soldats, quoique le detachement ne soit que d'un corps, les dites 
filles doivent gtre passees par les troupes qui composent la garde, 
excepte la cavalerie et les grenadiers qui se retirent quatre pas en 
arriere des rangs et ne pi-ennent pas des verges. Les filles prises 
dans les chambrees de tel corps que ce soit, c'est a ce corps k fournir 
seul le detachement pour les fouetter et les autres ne doivent pas s'en 
ragler. Si elles sont prises dans les chambrees des grenadiers c'est 
aux grenadiers seuls a les fouetter. N'etant pas d'usage qu'ils fouet- 
tent les filles prises dans les chambrees des fusiliers, les fusiliers ne 
doivent pas etre les correcteurs des leurs; si le cas arrivait, corame 
il pourrait se trouver de lamauvai.-e volonte dans les grenadiers, cela 
merite d'etre execute avec bien d'attention ponr ne pas tomber 
dans le cas oh I'obeissance des grenadiers occasionnerait peut-gtre 
quelque conseil de guerre comme cela est arrive a Nancy il y a 2 ou 
3 ans dont il y a eu trois grenadiers de pendus pour pareil cas. 

Ain>i done toutes fi.les prises partout ailleurs que dans des cham- 
brees des soldats par des patrouilles on par des detachements ordonnes 
par I'etat major, doivent gtre fouettees par les troupes de la garnison 
qui composent la garde, excepte comme je I'ai dit, la cavalerie et lea 
grenadiers. 



J 



APPENDIX. 285 

Si c'est une patrouille qne qnelqu'un corps fait, soit pour veiller 
an dehors que les soldats ne s'^cartent pas au dela des limites ou pour 
eviter la desertion, si ces dites patrouilles n'ont pas un ordre par ecrit 
de Tetat major d'arr^ter Its filles, ce sera a ce corps seul, dont la 
patrouille sera, a punir les dites filles avec les soldats, qu'ils les aient 
trouvees j ayant apparence sans cet ordre par ecrit que la dite pa- 
trouille est pour la discipline de leur corps. 

Si de ces filles sont prises dans des charabrees de la cavalerie c'est 
b. la cavalerie a les punir ou a I'etat-major d'ordonner leur chatiment 
sans que I'infanterie de la garnison doive en aucune fagon etre I'instru- 
ment de leur correction. 

Voila ce qui se pratique dans mon regiment et selon mon avis, 
c'est dont on ne doit pas s'ecarter, etc., etc. 



III. 

GExNERAL OLERKE TO WILLIAM COUNT LIPPE. 

Pahis, the Tith of Fibmary, 1765. 

Sir: I hope that your Highness found your affairs at home and 
your Watercastle * going on to your mind. I have been here for these 
three months, and I intend to return soon to London. The opposition 
is not considerable. Though there was a great division n[)on the 
general warrants it proceeded from way of thinking more than per- 
sonality, which does them honor. Lord Melburne was married two 
weeks ago to Lady Sophia Carteret, daughter of Lord Carteret, whom 
you knew in the Dettingen campaign as Si.^cretary of State. 

Mr. de Kalb will deliver this letter to your Highness. He is a 
German and a Protestant. He served the last war as deputy quar- 
termaster under Marshal Broglie, who has confidence in him and 
esteems him very much as a good officer; but he has it not in hia 
power at present to serve him as he deserves. He appears to me to 
be a sensible military man. Money is not his object, and he has for- 
tune sufficient to live at his ease. His ambition is to be made a gen- 
eral officer in Portugal, and Marshal Broglie by that means may have 
it in his power to get him the same rank in France in another war. 

I find here th:it Count d'Oyeras had made proposals to Closen, 

* Count William was then erecting the fortress of Wilhelmstein in the 
lake called the " Steiohuder Meer." 



286 APPENJ)IX. 

who did not accept of them and who died a little afterward. I have 
received here great civilities both from Marshal Broglie and the 
Court, and should be glad to have it in my power to show my sensi- 
bility to their kindness and good opinions of me. Monsieur de Kalb 
having no business nt present thinks it no trouble at any rate of going 
to Germany and paying his respects to your Highness ; he can inform 
you of many things as to the French part in the German war. I hope 
to have the pleasure of seeing you myself this year in Germany. I 
have a gieat desire to pay my respects to you in your own domin- 
ions. I am with the greatest respect your Highnesses most obedient 
servant. 

R. Cleeke. 

ly. 

1. PRECIS DES OBJETS DE LA COMMISSION DE M. DE KALB. ENVOY^ 
A M. LE DUG DE CHOlSErL LE 6 AOUT, 1768. 

M. le Due de Choiseul m'ayant charge de savoir les di^^positions 
des habitans des colonies de TAmerique septentrionale -X Tegard de 
Objet de ma la grande Bretngne et dans le cas que les Provinces en 
Commission. vinssent a une rupture ouverte avec leur metropole 
quels seraient leurs moyeiis de faire la guerre ou de defendre leur 
liberte. 

Voici done un abrege de mes observations sans entrer ici duns 
toutes celles que j'ai faites sur le pays dans un plus grand detail etqui 
ne sont pas relatives aux objets de ma commission. 

L'acte du [)apier timbre qu'on a voulu introduire dans ces colo- 
nies en 1765 a revolt e t<>us les esprits et cause des emeutes qui n'ont 
„ . , ^ , cesse qu'aveo la revocation de Facte et le renvoy de 

Siijet de mecon- ^ '' 

tentiment des ces pnpiers que le ParleiTient v avait fait pa?ser. La 

colonies. -• • ^ • 'i. -i. i ' "^ ti 

Iregate qui en etait chargee en a debarque partie au 
fort de la Nouvelle York comme la chose n'a pu etre secrete. Le 
peuple de la ville s'est assemble tumnltueuseinent, a bri e les coio- 
nets et tout ce qui s'est trouve hors de Penceinte du fort ap- 
partenant au Lieutenant Gouverneur qui fut oblige de renvoyer a 
bord du vaisseau tons les dits papiers pour retablir la communica- 
tion du fort ou il se trouvait renferme avec la ville. La fiegatii a 
ete observee et comme bloqnee jour et nuit par le peuple pendant 
plusieurs mois pour se rendre certain qu'on ne remettrtdt plus de ces 
papiers a terre jusqu'a ce que Facte ait ete revoque et la fregate 
rapellee avec toute sa charge. 



APPENDIX. 287 

L'acte de 1765 enjoignait a toutes les Provinces de fournir aux 
troupes Britanniques le logement, le chauflage, le sel, la boisson etc. 
oceassionna encore un mecontentement general, cependant les Colo- 
nies I'ont accorde a quelques exceptions et changements pres. 

Enfin un nouvel injpot en 1767 sur le papier, les glaces et toutes 
sortes de verres a acheve d'iudisposer ces peuples contre le Parlement 
et le Ministere leur a fait ouvrir les yeux sur leur situation et sur la 
possibilite de se passer de toutes les marcha^di-^es d'Europe eb encou- 
rageant les talens et leurs propres manufactures. 

Les marcliands de Boston animes d'un esprit patri( tiqiie pour le 

bien du public et aux depens de leur propre interet se sont engages 

par ecrit a ne plus rien tirer d'Angleterre que ce 

Arraneements ' ^ ^ & ^ 

u'^conomie pvis dernier acte ne soit revoque. Et sur leurs lettres 

par les Colonies. . , . , • ^ -, , . •, .,, 

circulaires aux negociants de toutes les villes commer- 
^antes des autres Colonies, la meme resolution a et6 prise dans tout 
le continent unanimenient, resolution qui tend neceseairement au 
detriment du commerce et des manufactures d'Angleterre et a exciter 
des troubles parmi les ouvriers des tiois royaumes. 

II n'y a pas de doute que le pays ne se rende independant pnr la 
suite lorsque le iiombre de ses habitans excedera celui de li grande 

Bretagne, et il y marclie a grands pas par la population 

II y alien que cc ® ' •' ° ' ' ^ * 

pays diviendra prodigieuse jointe aux nouveaux Colons qui ne disccn- 
in epen an . ^inueut d'y arriver de tous les pnys de I'Europe. Cet 
Ev^neiiient pent n'^tre pas eloign^. Le gouverneraent m^me le 
precipitera s'il continue par des Jictes de riguenr, et les taxes iliegales 
a gener le conimtrce ct les manufactures des colonies (que mal a 
propos ou la es a laisse etablir, mais qu'il n'est ]>lus temps d'arreter 
sans exciter des murmures) surtout si ces procedes les forcent une 
fois pour toutes d s'affranchir de l'acte de navigation (qniestle seul 
acte d'autorite que la metropole puisse exercer sur les Colonies, 
auqutl seul elles aient consenti et que les char;res pour leur eta- 
blissement exigent d'elles) et de la defense qui subsisre de se con- 
rerter entre elles d'une province a I'autre et toutes ensemble sur 
leurs interets communs et qu'elles s'avisent de prendre ouvertement 
le parti d'une contederat'on generate contre les mesures injustes du 
ministere. _ 

Ce pays s'affrancbira non seulement de toute d^pendance de la 
conrronne d'Angleterre avec le temps, mais il euvahira encore toutes 
kf possessions que les puissances Europeennes out en Amerique taut 
ifcles que terre ferme. 



u 



288 APPENDIX. 

II y a tout lieu de croire que la conformite des lois, d'usage, de 
langage et de religion empechera ees colonies (du moins dans le rao- 
Ces colonies n'- mens present malgre leurs sujets de plaintes) d'agir 
SScim^^SecourB contre leur metropole autrement que par la privation 
etraoger. ^qq marcbandises anglnises, par I'encouragement de 

leurs propres manufactures et Fetablissement de nouvelles a moins 
qu'ou ne les force a se defendre : Et dans ce cas la meme elles n'ac- 
cepteraient aucun secours etranger qui ne pourrait que leur paraitre 
suspect et alanner leur liberte surtout de la part de la France elles se 
soumettraient plutot au parlement d'Angleterre pour un temps. 
D'ailleiirs ces provinces etant d'accord entre-elles leurs propres forces 
suffiraient a leur defense mutuelle une armee anglaise telle forte 
qu'elle pui-se etre ne pourrait que ravager on piller quelques villes 
maritimes ou tout au plus quelques provinces, mais jamais les soumet- 
tre et les contenir. L'etendue seule sans effort des habitans pour s'y 
opposer est un obstacle invincible a un pareil dessein. Et si une 
independance complete est la fin des troubles presentes entre deux 
parties de la nation Britannique, le ministere de la metropole he 
pent Tattribner qu'a les injustices reiterees, et la nation enti^re sensible 
enfin aux outrages faites a des freres et des concito^'ens et de ce qu'elle . 
aurait a craindre pour son propre compte ne pourrait s'en prendre qu'a 
ses representants en parlement qui out bassement vendu a la cour la 
liberte et le droit du peuple. 

Je ne saurais done me persuader que le Gouvernement anglais en- 
tende assez pen les veritables interets pour en venir jamais a des ex- 
tremites avec ces colonies, je crois au contraire que toutes les discus- 
sions se termineront a I'entiere satisfaction de ces dernieres. 

Mes raisons sont que la plus saine partie d^ la nation Anglaise et 
le roi meme doivent s'opposer aux entreprises des ministres et aux 
mesures poursuivies jusqu'ici contre les colonies. 

La nation le doit. 

1° parceque les impots mis sur les Americains sont injustes et ty- 
ranniques et qu'ils sont absorbes par le grand nombre d'emploves 
pour la perception qui sont autant de pensionnaires du ministere al 
qu'il n'en resulte aucun bien pour les troisRoyaumes soit pour le paic- 
ment des dettes nationales, soit pour le f^oulagement des snjets, 

2" parceque le Benefice que I'administration recevait jusqu'ici des 
productions de l'Am6rique et de ce qn'on leur donnait en ecliange en 
s'en tenant aux termes de I'acte de navigation est plus avantageux a 
la metropole que tous les impots qu'on pourraient y substituer, 



I APPENDIX. 289 

3° pirceque la perte deviendrait immense, pour les negociants, les 
manufactures et pour toute la Grande Bretagne en general, si les colo- 
nies etaient forc6es a s'affranchir de Fobligation du dit acte de navi- 
gation a porter par consequent leurs productions aux etrangers directe- 
ment et a ouvrir leurs ports atoutes les nations, 

4° parceque si les colonies succombaient sous les forces que les 
trois Royaumes prSteraient au ministere, les Anglais n'auraienetilspas 
a craindre d'etre subjugues a leur tour pr.r les forces Americaines ou 
meme par des forces absolument etrangeres a leur constitution. 

Le Roi de son c6t6 devrait s'opposer aux mesures de ses ministres. 

1° que souffrant que le parlement taxe les Americains arbitraire- 
ment lui ote la plus belle prerogative de sa courronne en demandant 
a chacune de ces colonies des dons gratuits dans les terns difficiles ou 
suivant ses besoins, en observant avec eiles les formes usitees au par- 
lement pour les subsides, jamais les Americains ne s'etaient refuses a 
ces demandes sous les regnes precedents tant qu'on les a laisse les mai- 
tres de la repartition ; aller au contraire, est etublir le pouvoir arbi- 
traire et abolir la constitution Britanrdque. x 

Elles n'ont point de marine reglee mais elles ont eu pendant la 
guerre derniere un grand noiubre d'armateurs. La facillite de con- 
Marine, Arm6e, struire et d'equiper des vaisseaux les mettrait bientot en 
^^"^^ 6tat d'avoir des flottes, leurs nombreux batiments mar- 

cl lands y pouvant fournir les matelots necessaires. Elles n'ont point 
d'arsenaux ni de munitions en magasins publics, mais il se trouve dans 
le pays une graude quantite de canons ds tons calibres propre a servir, 
appartenant aux particuliers ou aux provinces, sans compter le ^^.-and 
nombre quMl y en a dans les-forts de Tint^rieur du pays et le long de la 
mer en batterie sur les ports, rivieres et anses et que les troupes du Roi 
ne sauraient empeclier d'etre pris par les liabitans au premier signal de 
revolte. II y a aussi beaucoup de poudre chez les conimerQuns par- 
cequ'il s'en fait un gros trafic avec les sauvages. Les habitans sont. 
abondammentpourvus d'arines. L'on n'y manque d'ailleurs ni de mines 
de toutes sortes de metaux ni d'ouvriers excellents pour les mettre en 
ceuvre ainsi que pour faire du salpetre de tres bonne quality et toutes 
sortes d'armes offensives et defensives. Le nombre des 
rivieres navigables a une grande distance de leurs em- 
bouchures et Tabondance de provision de toutes especes donnerait de 
la facilite d'en assembler en pen de temps et dans toutes les parties 
ou le besoin Pexigerait pour faire subsister des troupes eu corps 
d'armee. 

13 



290 APP:fNDix. 

Dans toutes les provinces (celle de Pensylvanie seule except^e et 
qui cependant ferait je crois oomine les autres si leiirs libertes etaienten 
Troupes du danger) les homnies depuis Tage de seize jusqu'a cin- 
paya ou miiices. quante ans, maries ou non, sont obliges de servir pour 
la defense de leur colonie. lis sont enregiment6s par comt^s, preciact 
ou election avec leurs officiers dont la plupnrt ont servis et ces regi- 
ments sont plus ou moins forts ; c'etait d'institution de tout temps 
parcequ'il 6tait necessaire dans Tetablissement que les hommes maries 
aidasseut a (lefendre leurs foyers. Mais aujimrd'hui on compte que 
dans lea provinces depuis la nouvelle Ecosee jusques et compris la 
Caroline meridionnle seulement, il y a plus de deux cent mille jeunes 
gens en et it de porter les amies, sans priver les terres des cultiva- 
leurs neces-aires. 

Les forts ou places de guerre dans Tint^rieur dn pays ou limitro- 
phes aux sauvages ne m^ritent gu^re le nom de fortification^, si Ton en 
Fortific^tion.s ^xcepte un petit nombre entre le Canada et l,i Nouvelle 
France d'nne [)art etles ancienne? possessions anglaises 
de Taufre, encore sont elles en mauvais 6tat et tres mal tvnues; celles 
de long de la nier comme Halifax, Boston, ITew York etc. situees snr 
la Tiier mSme ou dans des iles et bayes sont de pen de consequence et 
mal entretenues. Les batteries con.struites et fortifiees ci-devant aux 
embouchures des rivieres et an«!es ne valent pas la peine d'en parler 
dans Tetat oli elles sont actuellement. La raisonde cette n6glience est 
que les peuples n'ont guere plus d redouter les incursions des sauvages 
qui deperissetit et diminnent d vue d'oeil. L'on croit la d6pense de 
Tentretient des forts interieurs inutile, d'autant plus que les frontieres 
etant recnlees de temps en trmps il faudrait souvent en construire de 
nouvenux et FAngleterre compte plus sur ses forces navales et sur les 
colonies mSmes que sur les places de guerre pour emp^cher les puis- 
sances d'Europe de faire des descentes sur iS cotes. II est nigme plus 
que probable que si la conr vonlait faire construire ou r^parer des 
places de guerre le peupledes colonies s'y oppos^^rait dans les circon- 
stnnces presentes. Le gouvernement loin d'y augmenter les places a 
meme fait raver les ouvrages de Louisbourg; celles du Canada, les 
meilleures du^nord de rAmeriq^ue, sont assez mal entretennes ainsi que 
lefort Pitt sur le hiut Ohio ci-devant appel6 le fort Duquesne. 

Le Gouvernpment du pays est analoojue a ce'ui d'Angleterre ; il est 
jDompose dans chaque province d'an Gouverneur, d'un conseil du Roi 
Forme de gou- et d'une assemblee ou chambre basse ce qui represente le 
vememen -^^j^ j^ cliambre des pairs et celle des communes du moins 



APPENDIX. 291 

leurs fonctions se rapportent a celles de ces trois branches de legisla- 
ture. Le Gouverneur est royal, de proprleteouelectifsuivantles pro- 
vinces. Ceux de Pensylvanieetde Maryland sont gouverneurs de pro 
priete, ceux de Connecticut et de Rhode-Island sont gouverneurs 
electifs et ceux de toutes les autres provinces sont royaux ; plusieurs 
dependent de I'assemblee pour leur traiteraent (la cour a exige mais 
it^utilement de la province de Massachusetts-Bay qu'ellefixe au sien des 
appointements et c'est en partie cause des troubles presents ; Mr. 
Francis Bernard, Gouverneur actuel, ayant constamment prevenu 
1 'esprit des rninistres contre sa province aussi finira-t-il surement par 
etre revoqu6). Les conseils tiennent leurs commissions du bon plaisir 
du Koi, et les membres de I'assemblee sont elus par les villes, comtes 
et corporations, pour un, trois, cinq ou sept ans suivant les usages par- 
ticuliers des provinces. C'est cette assemblee qui a seule le droit de 
taxer le peuple, lever des imp6ts, accorder des graces pecuniaires et les 
subsides. Les lois se proposent aussi par ceLte assemblee seule, mais 
elles out besoin de Tapprobation du conseil et de Tattache du gou- 
verneur ; le m6me concours est necessaire pour en abroger d'anciennes, 
chaque province a droit d'en faire pourvu qu'elles ne soient pas con- 
traires aux lois fondamentales de la Grande Bretagne. Les provinces 
sunt independantes les unes des autres. 

Le general commandant en chef des troupes du continent a droit 
de convoquer en quelqne province et lieu qu'il lui plaise les 4tats 
generaux du pays on deputes de toutes les colonies et de presider aux 
deliberations s'il vent s'y trouver. Les gouvernements ontvoulu lui 
disputer la preseance chacun dans son propre gouvernement ; mais le 
Roi a decide la chose contre eux. 

Toutes les colonies sont endettees par les efforts qu'elles ont fait 
pendant la derniere guerre, d'assister en troupes, vaisseaux, vivres et 
argent leur metropole, et pour avoir trop depense en 
embellisssment de leurs villes en edifices publiques de 
toutes esp^ces 6tnblissements de colleges et academies, en pensions 
accordees aux savants et artistes qu'on y a attir6s de toutes parts, en 
choses utiles pour la commodite du commerce comme quais, marches 
etc. et a ouvrir des communications et grands chemins. Les taxes 
ordinaires (quoiqu'augmentees considerablement en comparaison du 
pen que les colonies payaient ci-devant) ne suffirent plus a ce3 depenses. 
II a fallu avoir recours a des tmprunts autorises par la cour ce qui a 
donne lieu au papier monnaie qui depuis a fait beaucoup de mal au 
pays, les troubles presents y ayant mis le discredit. Les esp^ces sont 



292 APPETTDIX. 

devemies rares et ont disparues. La guerre en ayant beaiicoup pro- 
cure, les liabitans se sont abandonnes a une depense proportionnee et 
ont tellement augmente les choses de luxe qu'ils tiraient d'Augleterre 
qu'ils ne pourraient plus les payer qu'avec quatorze a quinze millions 
par an en argent comptant; par dela I'^change de leur productions 
pour solder la balance et cette diminution d'esp^ces se fait eentir 
d'avantage a mesure que le papier monnaie s'amortit (la cour ne 
voulant plus permettre de nouvelles emissions.) 

II y a des negociants et autres particuliers puissamment ricbes 
mais les tresors publics sont 6puises et les revenus des provinces 
ali^nes. 

Toutes les pieces d'or et d'argent des 6tats souverains de I'Europe 
ont cours dans ce pays-ci pour leur juste valeur ; les plus communes 
sont I'or du Portugal et I'argent crEspagne il n'y en a presque point 
d'Angleterre si Ton excepte les pieces de cuivre. 

L'on pretend (et la cbose est probable par la raison ci-devant dite 
du discredit du papier monnaie) qu'il y a de grosses sorames d'argent 
dans le pays, que les possesseurs retiennent durant ces difficultes ; tout 
cela fait qu'on est gen6 dans le commerce. II n'y a done que la paix, 
I'economie et le commerce avec les isles et le sud de I'Amerique ou en 
cas de rupture avec I'Angleterre un commerce ouvert avec toutes les 
nations qui puissent rendre a ce pays, Topnlence et I'aisance. 

Le produit de ces colonies en des cbevaux des bestiaux de toutes 
especes et en grand nombre, toutes sortes de bles en abondance, du 
houblon, du riz, de I'indigo, du coton, de la cire, resine, goudron, 
tabac, bois de constraction, lin chanvre, fer, salpetre, plomb, cuivre, 
commes, cuirs, pelleteries, castors, baleines etc. La peclie est par- 
tout abondante, soit dans la mer, soit dans les rivieres. Les vian- 
des, la volaille et le gibier sont excellents et varies. Enfin c'est un 
pays qui produit au dela de ce qui est n6cessaire a la subsistance des 
habitans, et Ton n'y eprouve point de disette ni d'annees steriles. 

J'y ai etabli des correspondances par la Hollande et par Londre?, 
afin d'etre informe de tout ce qui y arrivera d'in- 

Correspon- . . 

dances etabiies. teressant, pour pouvoir en rendre compte au mmistre. 

Je suis en 6tat de r^pondre plus en detail sur tout ce qui regarde 

ces colonies. 

Sign6 DE Kalb. 
Fait a Pabis, ce 6 Ao&t, 1768. 



APPENDIX. 293 



2. KALB TO OHOISEUL. 

Paris, le 16 Septembre, 1768. 

Monseigneur: J'ai I'honneur de vous adresser les nouvelles 
que je regois de l'Am6rique. Si j'ose vous communiquer mon id6e 
particuliere sur cette querelle, je pense que malgre les depenses 
<^normes que la cour d'Angleterre fait pour forcer ses colonies a la 
souTni?sion qu'elle finira par ne faire aucun acte de regneur et a ac- 
corder aux colonies ce qu'ils demandent mon opinion est fondee 
autant sur la justice do leurs pretentions que sur les plaintes que les 
raarchands et fabriquants anglais ne raanqueront pas de porter an 
nouveau parlement sur la decadence de leur commerce depuis ces 
troubles, d'autant plus que tons les acts de parlement qui y ontdonne 
lieu n'etablissaient des impots en Amerique que pour la defense du 
pays (du moins c'etait le pretexte) quoique dans le fait c'est pour y 
entretenir nombre de pensionnaires et un plu>j grand nombre de 
troupes qu'il n'est necessaire, enfin pour donner moyen aux ministres 
de distribuer plus de graces et nullement pour lesoulageuient des trois 
royanmes ni pour contribuer an payeinent des dettes nationales. Si 
done tous ces impots ne doivent Stre employes au soutien des colonies 
et pour leur propre defense, pourquoi ne leur permettait-on pas de se 
taxer elles memes ? pour subvenir a ces depenses comme cela s'est 
pratique par le passe. 

Mais je pensi au«si que quelques me>ures que le parlement et le 
ministere puissent prendre a present, ils ne retabliront point cette 
branohe de commerce comme elle etait. Le coup est porte, on a 
appris aux colonies a etablir des manufactures de toutes esp^ces et 
a se passer de leur m^tropole qu'on emploie actuellement les voies de 
riguenr ou de douceur on ne saurait les forces a tirer d'Europe ce 
qu'ils trouvent chez elles, d'autant mieux qu'elles trouvent dans les 
isles et dans le sud de I'Am^rique (sans compter leurs autres de- 
boncli^s) un d6bit siir de leurs pr.>duits et que les richesses de ce 
commerce leur r^steront au lieu qu'elles 6taient obligees de les envoyer 
ci-devant en Angleterre pour solder leurs comptes. 

Je reviens toujours a dire, Monseigneur, que ces colonies sont trop 
utiles a la Grande Bretagne pour qu'elles exigent une rupture enti^re 
de la part de leur metropole et qu'elles n'accepteraient aucun secours 
Stranger etant fort en etat de se maintenir par leurs propres forces 
seules, j'ajouterai m^me qu'il ne serait pas de lasaine politique d'une 
puissance quelconque de se meler a cette querelle quand meme elle 



294 APPEJ^^DIX. 

serait requise par les colonies (ce qui n'est pas probable) a moins 
quMl n'j ait des actes d'hostilites cominis entre I'Amerique et la 
Grande Bretagne que les colonies aient publie leur independance en 
tout point, qu'elles se soient unies par une Confederation generale 
qu'elles aient des armees sur pied qu'elles invitent par une resolution 
unanirae et publique toutes les nations a venir commercer dans leurs 
ports et qu'elles soient en etat de proteger ce commerce par une 
marine militaire ce qui rendrait impossible tout accommodement entre 
les deux partis, ce n'est qu'alurs qu'on pourrait fairela guerre al'Angle- 
terre avec apparence de succ^s. La declarer plutot serait d(mner 
lieu a nne prompte reconciliation et a s'attirer toutes les forces de 
I'Angleterre et celles de leurs colonies sur les bras. Je vous parle 
ainsi franchement, Monseigneur, parceque je ne voudrais pas, comme 
j'ai deja eu I'honneur de vous le dire qu'on vous trompat ni qu'on 
ptit voua persuader que le moment fut favorable pour se brouiller 
avec nos voisins. 

L'on me mande de Londres que I'amiral Spry doit avoir regu or- 
dre de proteger les vaisseaux anglais dans la Mediterannee et d'era- 
p^cher qu'ils ne soient visites par les vaisseaux frangais a qnoi l'on 
ajoute que si I'amiral suit son instruction de point en point qu'il est 
presque impossible qu'il ne sj commette des hostilifes entre Jes deux 
nations. Cette nouvelle ne m'est pas donnee pour bien positive elle 
demande confirmation. 

Je suis etc. 

3. KALB TO CHOISEUL. 

Paris, le 6 Novembre, 1768. 

J'ai I'honneur de vous adresser ci-joiut les nouvelles que je re^ois 
de I'Amerique. Elles ne peuvent ^tre que peu interessantes dans un 
temps oti les minis; res sont divises et que le parti a prendre sur la 
conduite a tenir avec les colonies parait etre remis a la rentree du 
parlement. Je suis toujonrs d'opinion qu'on n'emploiera point les 
voies de rigueur surtout lorsqu'on verra que les preparatifs de guerro 
n'inspirent pas de terreur a les peuples. II est bien possible aussi que 
ces memes preparatil- aient un autre objet. Les Anglais ont une 
jalousie extreme de I'etat flori.-sant des isles francaises si vous leur 
faites la guerre, leur soin principal se portera sur cette pnrtie et s'ils 
ont envie de vous la faire euxmeme^i, jugez Monseigneur, des avan- 
tages que leur donnerait I'aproximite des subsistances et de leuis 
forces dans le continent de I'Amerique pour leurs premieres opei a- 



APPENDIX. 295 

tions. lis J ont actnellement dix nenf bataillons de sept cent liom- 
raes chacun, sans compter ce qu'ils ont dans leurs isles dont j'ignore 
le norabre et les secours qu'ils tireraient facilemenfc de leurs colonies 
en retablissant leurs privileges et exemptions d'impots. Je dois vous 
avoir marque precedemment, Monseigneur, que ces memes colonies 
ont fourni a leurs frais 25000 hommes de bonnes troupes pendant la 
derniere guerre et leurs villes maritimes un grand nombre d'arraa- 
teurs. Je ne sais au juste le nombre des vaisseaux de guerre employes 
dans les isles Anglaises, mais je suis certain de treize stationnes sur 
les forts depuis terre Neuve jusqu'aux isles Lucayes. 

Je vous supplie d'etre persuade que mes reflexiona ne sont que 
I'effet de raon zele pour le service du Roi. 

Je suis etc. 

4. KALB TO OHOISEUL. 

Paris, le 15 Novembre, 1768. 

MoNSEiGNKUE : J'ai I'honneur de vous envoyer les nouvelles que 
je regois d'Amerique. Je n'y ajoute aucune reflexion. La fermen- 
tation que ces ecrits annoncent fait assez voir I'esprit de fermete de 
ces peuples et les suites facbeuses que cela pourrait avoir pour FAngle- 
terre s'il continuait a vouloir les soumettre par la force ce que je ne 
saurais me persuader. Je suis au contraire d'opinion que le prochain 
parlement employera des voies de conciliation ; je ne doute pas non 
plus que le Gouverneur Bernard quoiqu3 soutenu jusqu'ici par le 
Ministere ne soit rappele. 

Je suis etc. 



V. 

COUNT BROGLIE TO COUNT ST. GERMAIN. 

Paris, le 13 Novembre, 1775. 
Monsieur: Monsieur de Kalb, ant^ien major du regiment de 
Loewendal, et qui depuis la ref )rme de ce corps a ete employ^ dans 
I'etat major de Parmee d'Allemagne, ou 11 a obtenu en 1761 L' brevet 
de Lieutenant Colonel, est venu passer ici quatre mois cette annee en 
consequence des nouveaux arrangements faits par Mr. le marecbal 
Du Muy pour les officiers superieurs reform^s. Quoiqu'il ait ete dans 
rinaction depuis trop longteraps, je lui ai retrouve ici, Monsieur le 
Comte, toutes les dispositions que je lui avals connues a la guerre, et 



296 



APPEIJ DIX 



cela a renouvele rnes regrets de ne I'avoir pas vu plac6 avec utilit.6 
pour le service du roi et pour lui. II sera digne d'un ministre comme 
vous de mettre ses talents en usage. II en a de differens genres. 11 
parle bien plusieurs langues et peut etre employe a tout ce que vous 
jugerez a propos. Je serai volontiers garant de son z^le et Je suis 
shr que vous aurez lieu d'etre satisfait, si vous daignez le mettre en 
activity. J'ai Thonneur d'etre etc. 

Le Comte de Bboglie. 

VI. 

kalb's furlough. 

A FoNTAiNEBLEAtr, 4 Nov6mbre, 1776. 

Le Roy trouve bon, Monsieur, que vous vous absentiez du ro- 
yaume pendant deux ans pour aller vaquer a vos affaires. 

Je suis tr^s parfaitement, Monsieur, votre tres humble et obeissant 
serviteur. 

St. Geemain. 

A MoNsiEUE LE Baron de Kalb, 

Lieutenant Colonel d'Infanterie. 



VIL 

SILAS DEANE's agreement WITH KALB, LAFAYETTE, AND OTHERS. 

(From the Diplomatic Correspondence of the Revolution, by Jared Sparks, Vol. I., pp. 
62, 71, 97 and 98.) 

List of Officers of infantry and light troops, destined to serve the 
United States of North America. 



Name of Officers. Rank. 

Baron de Kalb Major General 

Viscount do Mauroy " 

de Senneville Major 

Chev. dii Buy?son " 

Chev. de FayoUes Lieutenant Colonel 

Dubois Martin Major 

de Holtzendorff Lieutenant Colonel 

Le Chev. de Failly " 

Amariton Major 

de Roth Captain 



Commencement of their pay. 

V November 1776. 



20 




a 


7 




i( 


7 




i( 


20 




I* 


20 




i( 


20 




i( 


1 


December 


(I 


1 


u 


(( 


1 


(( 


(( 



APPENDIX. 



297 



de Gerard Captain 1 December 1776. 

Philip de Boreval Lieutenant 

de Monies " 

Loquet de Granges '' 

de Vrigny Capt. Comp. franche 

Candon Lieutenant 

The said ranks and pay at the dates marked in the present list 

have been settled mutually between us, the undersigned, me, Silas 

Deane, in my quality of the most Honorable Congress of the United 

States of North America and me John Baron de Kalb, Major-General 

in the service of the States General. Done double at Paris this l"'of 

December, 1776. 

De Kalb. 
Silas Deane. 



List of Officers of infantry and light troops destined to serve in the 
armies of the United States of North America. 



Names of Officers. 


Bank. 


Commencement of their p 


M. de Lafayette 


Major-General 


7 December 1776 


Baron de Kalb 


u 


7 November " 


Delesser 


Colonel 


1 December " 


de Valfort 


(( 


^ U (( 


de Fayolles 


Lieutenant Colonel 


-l (( (( 


Dubois Martin 


Major 


7 November " 


de Gimat 


a 


1 December " 


de Yrigny 


Captain 


2 U (( 


de Bedaulx 


blank 




Capitaine 


Captain 


2 U (( 


de la Colombe 


Lieutenant 


"1^ 4( (( 


Candon 


u 


7 November '' 



The ranks and the pay, which the most honorable Congress shall 
affix to ihem to commence at the periods marked in the present list, 
have been agreed to by us the undrrsigned, Silas Deane in quality of 
deputy of the American States-General on the one part, the Marquis 
de Lafiyette and tlie Baron de Kalb on the other part. Signed 
double at Paris this 7'" of December, 1776. 

Silas Deane. 

The Marqcis de Lafayette. 

De Kai-b. 
13* 



298 APPEi^DIX. 

The desire "which the Marquis de Lafayette shows of serving 
among the troops of the United States of America, and the interest 
which he takes in the justice of their cause, make him wish to distin- 
guish himself in this w;ir, and to render himself as useful as lie 
possibly can ; but not thinking that he can obtain leave of his family 
to pass the seas, and serve in a foreign country, till he can go as a 
general otficer, I have thought I could not better serve my country, 
and those who have intrusted me, than by granting to him, in the 
name of the very honorable Congress, the rank of Major-General, 
which I beg the States to confirm to him, to ratify and deliver to 
him the commission to hold and take rank, to count from this day, 
with the general otiicers of the same degree. His high birth, his 
alliances, the great dignities which his family holds at this Court, 
his considerable estates in this realm, his personal merit, his reputa- 
tion, his disinterestedness, and above all his zeal for the liberty of 
our provinces, are such as to induce me alone to promise him the 
rank of Major-General in the name of the United States. In witness 
of which I have signed the present, this 7'" of Decbr. 1776. 

Silas Deane. 

On the conditions here explained I offer myself and promise to 
depart when and how Mr. Deane shall judge proper, to serve the 
United States wiih all possible zeal, without any pension or par- 
ticular allowance, reserving to myself the liberty of returning to 
Europe when my family or my king shall recall me. 

Done at Paris 7'' of Decbr. 1776. 

The Marquis de la Fayette. 



VIII. 

LETTERS WRITTEN BY FRENCH OFFICERS TO KALB, RE- 
QUESTING TO BE EMPLOYED IN AMERICA.* 

1. MAJOR DU MONTBERT A MR. DE KALB. 

LisiEcx, le 23 Decenibre 1 776. 

Un de mes amis m'ecrit du Havre, que vous voudriez bien, Mon- 

* While these letters, which have been taken at random from a large 
number, on the one hand reveal the motives of the majority of the French 
officers in entering the American army, they, ou the other hand, conclusively 
prove the excellence of the assistance thus rendered their arms. 



APPENDIX. 299 

eieur, avoir la bonte de vous interesaer pour un de mes parents, 
porteur de la presente, qui a servi en qualite de lieutenant au r6gi- 
ment de Oliampagne, Tespace de 17 ans, et qui a quitte le regiment, 
il y a pen pres un an, pour des raisons qu'il vous dira lui-merae. 
II desirerait passer au service des insurgents. Je reclame votre 
protection a cet egard ; je ne doute pas de la reussite, si vous avez la 
bonte, Monsieur, de vous employer pour lui. C'est un tres boii 
officier, sachant bien son metier, mais il est pauvre, et c'est cette 
pauvrete qui lui a fait perdre son etat. 

Les services, que vous voudrez bien lui rendre, me feront con- 
tracter a votre egard une obligation d'autant plus grande, que j'ai 
riionneur d'etre avec respect etc. etc. 

2. LE CHEVALIER d'eSTIMAUVILLE A MR. DE KALB. 

Au Havke. le 29 Decemhre, 1776. 

Monsieur : Je prends la liberte de vous ecrire pour vous rap- 
peler la prome>se, que vous m'avez faite a Foccasion de Mr. le 
(Jlievaller du Montbert, dont vous trouverez ci-joint I'etat de service. 
Je r6itere ma priere pour vous engager a fiiire ce que vous pourrez 
pour rendre service a un brave officier, sur la disgrace duquel, il n'y 
a a reprocher, que des fautes de jeuiiesse et dont vous paurrez vous 
assurer par des informations a son ancien corps. En mon particulier, 
robligatlon que je vous en aurai ajouterala plus vive reconnaissance 
aux sentirnens de la plus parfaite consideration et du profond respect 
avec laquelle je suis Monsieur etc. 

P. S. Vous trouverez aussi ci-joint une lettre de Mr. du Mont- 
bert, major des ville et citadelle du Havre, oncle du postulant. II 
desirerait savoir le plutot possible, a quoi s'en tenir pour prendre les 
arrangements n^cessaires. 

3. MEMOIEE. 

"Etat des services du s'eur Antoine Augustin de Varennes, Che- 
valier du Montbert, gentilhomme, ag6 de 36 ans, sortant du regiment 
de Champagne en qualitd de lieutenant en i)remier. 

Le dit officier a commence a servi r dans le corps de la gendar- 
merie, ou il a fa't la campagne de 1758 et y est rest6 jusqu'au mois 
de ISTovembre 1760. II a joint ensuite le regimjnt de Champagne 
en qualite de lieutenant en Mars 1761, et y a fait le campagne de 1761 
et 1762. II a fait toute la campagne de 1762 aux volontaires de I'arm^e 
sous Fordres de M. de la Motte: 



300 appe:!^dix. 

II a continue ses services au regiment de Champagne, jusqu'en 
Juin 1776, que des raisons de fortune, I'ont force de quitter le dit 
regiment, 

II a fait la campagne de 1769 en Corse. II s'est trouve a toutes les 
affaires oh ont servi le regiment de Champagne et le corps des volon, 
taires dans lequel il a fait la campagne de 1762. 

II a 6te choisi pour ^tre, corame aide-major au bataillon d'in- 
struction dans les manoeuvres provisuires, qu'on execute a Metz eu 
1775 et s'en est acquitte avec la satisfaction de ses sup^rieurs. 

Le Chevalier de Varennes du Montbert. 

4. fexAT DES services DU CHEVALIER DE FAILLY. 

Ce 6 Janvier, 1777. 

Le Chevalier de Failly, capitaine de chasseurs au regiment 
d'Anjou, a commence a servir sous-lieutenant dans le regiment de 
Koyal-Wallon, le 5 Octobre 1746. II s'est trouve au siege de Bergen 
op Zoom, Maestricht, et a la bataille de Lafeld. 

Keforme en 1749 avec tout le corps, il a continue son service dans 
les milices de Champagne. II est entre en 1756 lieutenant en second 
avec rang de lieutennnt dans le regiment de Berry. II a fait toute 
la derniere guerre au Canada, toujours aux grenadiers ou volontaires. 
II commandait la Vigilante sur le lac Champlain en 1759 qu'il a sau- 
vee malgre les vaisseaux anglais, il a meme eu 300 francs de 
gratification. II a ete incornor^ avec tout son corps en 1763 dans 
celui d'Aquitaine. II a fait la campagne de 1769 aux volontaires de 
I'armee de Corse. II a obtenu la commission de capitaine, le 10 Sep- 
teinbre de la meme annee. II a ete embarque sur la Migrione pour le 
bombardement de Tunis en 1770. II desirerait Stre employe en cette 
qualite dans telle partie du monde, qu'il plaira a Sa Majesty de I'en- 
voyer. II supplie le Ministre d'avoir egard a son pen de fortune. 

Le Chevalier de Failly. 

Monsieur Le Baron de Kalb, brigadier des armies du Roi, est prie 
de ne pas oublier le dit Chevalier de Failly. II se fait une fete d'etre 
employe sous ses ordres. II est pour la vie dans ces sentimens-la, II 
fait des vceux pour I'entiere satisfaction de Monsieur Le Baron de 
Kalb et lui est attach^ et finit aveo un tres profond respect etc. etc. 



APPENDIX. 301 

5. LE CHEVALIEE DE FEANVAL A M. LE BAEON DE KALB. 

DoRBEO, C6 6 Fevrier, 1777. 
Monsieue: J'ai I'honneur devons ^crirepour etre informe au juste 
si je puis corapter passer en Am^rique. L'on mande de Versailles 
que la cour ne veut plus permettre a aucun officier de quitter le 
royaume ; que le Docteur Franklin a regu des ordres de quitter la 
France, ainsi que Monsieur Deane. Ces nouvelles-la ne denoteraieut 
rien de bon pour les projets que j'ai eu I'honneur de vous commu- 
niquer tant pour faire la guerre que pour m'etablir en Amerique. Je 
vous prie, Monsieur, d'avoir la bonte de m'instruire sur ces objets. 
J'esp^re, que vous ne tronverez p:is mauvais, que je me sois adresse 
a vous. La bonne volont6, que vous avez bien voulu marquer a, 
m'obliger m'a determine. Monsieur le Marechal de Broglie ne va 
pas encore a Paris, j'en suis tres fache — je me flatlais qu'il vous 
aurait rendu assez bon compte de moi pour meriter votre estime et 
vous engager plus particuliereineut a vous y interesser. J'ai I'hon- 
neur d'etre etc. etc. 



IX. 

KALB'S ENTRANCE INTO THE AMERICAN SERVICE. 

1. WILLIAM OAEMICHAEL TO EICHAED HENET LEE.* 

Paris, 3Iareh, 1777. 

Sir : As your brother, Arthur Lee, Esq., is not on the spot, I 
take the liberty, in consequence of his request, to inform you of his 
health; he is now at Burgos, in Spain, where he remains in conse- 
quence of the request of the Spanish ministry, to negotiate on behalf 
of the United States. From what he writes me, I hope he will at 
least get some money on our account. Your brother, the alderman, 
as I am just informed by a gentleman from London, is well. I take 
the liberty of introducing to your notice and protection the Marquis 
Lafayette and Baron de Kalb. The former is of the first distinction, 

* Carmichael was at that time the secretary of the American Commis- 
sioners Deane, Franklin, and Arthur Lee, at Paris. Richard Henry Lee, the 
brother of the latter, was one of the most influential members of Congress? 
and chairman of the committee to investigate the claims of the foreign offi- 
cers. He was a stanch friend of Kalb's to the death of the latter. 



302 A P P E X D I X . 

for birth, fortune, and family here : the other, of the highest reputa- 
tion ill the service, and strongly recommended by the Marshal de 
Broglie and the Marshal de Mallabois. The former's family are our 
strong support. His uncle is ambassador at the Court of London, 
nnd from his representations we hope to bring on a war, much sooner 
than it would otherwise happen. I hope he (the Marquis) will have 
every reason to think favorably of the country. I have the honor to 
be, with much respect, etc. etc. 

2. KALB TO EIOHARD HENEY LEE. 

Bristol, SepL 16, 1777. 

SiE : I arn unable to tell you with how much reluctance and even 
sorrow I must acquaint you that I cannot accept of the honor Con- 
gress intended to me, for the various reasons I explained to you, Sir, 
to several members of Congress, but more particularly to Mr. Lovell, 
and which I repeat to Mr. Secretary Thomson ; they are all of great 
weight with me. I beseech you, dear Sir, to lay before Congress, 
that I have, and always sliall retain the highest sense of thankfulne 3 
and veneration for the whole of so respectable a body of men, and 
for each of the members in particular. My most sincere vows will 
ever be for success to all tiieir measures and undertakings, and for 
the general welfare and happiness of your States. I will never forget 
the private obligations I owe to several of your gentlemen, but espe- 
cially to your kindness to me. I never will be happier than when I 
shall hear from you, or when I shall be able to convince you of the 
esteem and resi)ect with which I have the honor to be, Sir, etc. etc. 

3. KALB TO EIOHARD HENEY LEE. 

Camp at White Plains, August 17, 1778. 

SiE : I received both letters you honored me with, dated 15th of 
February and 23d of March last past, but rather late ; the first came 
to hand the 20th of May and the second in June. A long sickness, 
the march of the army while I was yet very unwell, and a good deal 
of business since ray recovery, have prevented me from answering 
before now. You are much in the right. Sir, to think that the 
change in political matters must place your independence beyond all 
doubt, and far beyond the power of England to disturb ; I heartily 
rejoice with you and all true Americans on the occasion. It is to be 
expected, also, the alliance with France and the real assistance the 
king intends to the States, must needs procure you a speedy and last- 



APPENDIX. 303 

ing peace. Tliis day I wrote to President Laurens, in favor of Mons. 
le Vicomte de Mauroy and Mons. le Chev. de Fayolles, which will be 
laid before the supreme council of the States. I need not to trouble 
you with the contents of it. I will only observe to you, that I am 
ordered to do the same by Marshal Duke de Broglie, and the count 
his brother ; and as they expect my answer, on that account I should 
be greatly obliged to you if you would be pleased to let me have the 
reasons for or against, as the matter will be debated in Congress, and 
to be very particular in that respect. Though I ardently wish Mons. 
de Mauroy's request be granted, yet I am afraid it will not, by reason 
of a letter he wrote, as I understood, to Congress, not very accept- 
able. If he is refused on that account I should be glad to have it 
mentioned, because I think his noble protectors are unacquainted 
with this piece of bad policy of his. I have the honor to be, with 
great respect and esteem, dear Sir, etc. etc. 



X. 

LAFAYETTE TO MRS. GETMULLER, WHOSE MAIDEN NAME WAS KALB. 
La Gkange, pres Rosey, ce 11 Floreal, an IX {Avril 1800). 

Je vous remercie, Madame, de la confiance dont vons m'honorez, 
et des details que vous avez bien voulu me donner. C'est avec un 
vif interet que j'ai appris des nouvelles d'une famille a laquelle je 
me sens lie par mon ancienne amitie pour le general de Kalb. Je 
serai toujours heureux de rendre a sa memoire, ce que je Ini dois. 

Vous savez sans douto que Mr. votre p^re apres avoir fait avec 
distinction la guerre de sept ans fut envoye par Mr. de Choiseul dans 
les colonies Anglaises de I'Ainerique septntrionale pour prendie con- 
naissance de ce pays, qui avait ete T occasion de la rupture entre les 
cours de Versailles et de Londres. II etait naturel que la decLiraiiori 
d'independance des Etats Unis inspirat an general Kalb le desir d'y 
retonrner. Son depart fut encourag^ par le cointe de Broglie et ap- 
prouve secr^tement par le gouvernement frangais. Cest dans ce 
temps qu'u Tinsu du gouvernement et bient6t apres malgre lui que je 
fis connaissance avec les envoyees du CongrSs. Nous partinies en- 
semble de Paris, nous arrivatnes en semble a Charleston et a Phila- 
delphie, d'oti je joignis Paringe. Quelqnes circonstances retard^rei)t 
son entree au service. II fut peu de temps apres place avec le pre- 
mier grade militaire, celui de Major General. Cest en cette quality 



304 APPEN'DIX. 

qu'il commandait un corps d'arm^e dans la Caroline du Nord, lorsque 
le general Gates vint prendre le commandement en chef. II fut battu 
a Camden par Lord Cornwallis. Le general Kalb se montra g6n6ral I 
habile et soldat intrepide. Sa division soutint la premiere I'effort des 
ennerais. L'affaire eut pu se retablir, sMl n'avait 6t6 mortellement 
b]ess6. Les deux armes rendirent hommage a ses talents et h son 
courage, qui meme dans un general merita d'etre remarque. Son 
merite militaire, sa loyaut6 civique, ses qualites sociales, le firent 
honorer et regretter par les troupes, le peuple, le general Washington 
et le Congres. Ses amis personnels furent viveraent afflig^s et per- 
sonne plus que moi, Madame, qui lui etait attache par affection, la 
reconnaissance et une fraternite d'armes, commencee des mes pre- 
miers pas dans cette carriere. 

Si de nouveaux renseignemens, si des attestations d'Amerique, si 
mes propres temoignages peuvent vous etre utiles, donnes-moi vos 
ordres. Je vous aurai une sensible obligation de m'indiquer comment 
je pourrai acquitter une dette sacree de Tamitie que j 'avals vouee a 
Mr. votre pere. 

Agr6ez, je vous prie, I'expression de mon respect et de mes voeux 
pour votre bonheur. Lafayette. 

XI. 

FRANKLIN AND DEANE TO THE COMMITTEE OF FOREIGN 
AFFAIRS. 

Paris, 25 May, 1777. 

* * "* The Marquis de Lafayette, a young nobleman of great 
family connections here and great wealth, is gone to America in a 
ship of his own, accompanied by some officers of distinction, in order 
to serve in our armies. He is exceedingly beloved and everybody's 
good wishes attend him ; we cannot but hope he may meet with such 
a reception as will make the country and his expedition agreeable to 
him. Those who censure it as imprudent in him do nevertheless ap- 
plaud his spirit, and we are satisfied that the civilities and respect 
that may be shown to him will be serviceable to our affairs; here, as 
pleasing not only to his powerful relations and to the Court but to the 
whole French nation. He has left a beautiful young wife, and for her 
sake particularly we hope that his bravery and ardent desire to dis- 
tinguish himself will be a little restrained by the General's prudence, 
so as to not permit his being hazarded much, but on some important 
occasion. 



APPENDIX. 305 

XII. 
KALB AND CONGRESS. 

Monday, 8th September, 1777. 

Congress took into consideration the report of the committee on 
foreign applications, wherein they set forth : 

That besides a number of officers who are come from Europe and 
the West Indies of their own accord to solicit for rank and employ- 
ment in the American army, there are others who have proceeded 
upon the encouragement of conventions made and signed at Paris by 
Silas Define, E-q., as agent for the United States of North America ; 
that Mr. Deane had no authority to make such conventions, and that 
Congress therefore are not bound to ratify or and fulfil them: 

Your committee for this, report that the Baron, de Kalb and the 
Viscount de Mauroy, with a number of officers who came with them 
from France, have ofifered their service, provided their engngements 
with Mr. Deane, in respect to rank, are fulfilled; but that the Ameri- 
can army having been arranged before the arrival of these gentlemen 
in America, their expectations cannot be complied with without de- 
ranging it and thereby injuring at so critical a juncture the American 
cause : that the zeal, however, of these gentlemen and their conse- 
quent expenses merit the attention of Congress ; wherefore your 
committee report the following resolve : 

Resolved : that the thanks of Congress be given to the Baron 
de Kalb and the Viscount de Mauroy, with the officers who accom- 
pany them, for their zeal for passing over to America to ofl'er their 
service to tljese United States, and that their expenses to this Con- 
tinent and on their return to France be paid. 

Resolved: that Congress agree to the said report and resolve. 

Ordered : that the Baron de Kalb and the Viscount de Mauroy 
be furnished with a copy of the foregoing report and resolution, at- 
tested by the Secretary. 

Sunday, 14th Septfimber, 1777. 

The committee on the treasury bri>ught in a report, whereupon: 

Resolved: that the president draw Bills of exchange on the 

Commissioners of Congress at Paris in favor of the several officers 

and for the severid sums hereinafter mentioned, the said bills to be 

made payable at thirty days after sight and to express value receive<l 



306 A P P E N«) I X . 

by and chargeable to Congress, viz. A set in favor of Baron de Kalb 

for 6000 livres tournois. 

Resolved: that there be paid to the following gentlemen the 
several sums hereafter specified to defray, with the sums above di- 
rected to be drawn in bills of exchange on the commissioners at Paris 
in their favor, the expenses of their coming from France and return- 
ing thither, viz. to Baron de Kalb 500 dollars. 

Monday, 15th September, 1777. 

Resolved, that another major general be appointed in the army 
of the United States ; the ballots being taken. Baron de Kalb was 
elected. 

4th October, 1777. 

" Congress resumed the consideration of the report from the board 
of war, whereupon : 

Resolved : that the Baron de Kalb be at liberty to give up his 
commission of major general, if the contingency mentioned in his 
letter of the 28th of last month should happen. 

That the Baron de Kalb's commission be dated the same day with 
that of the Marquis de Lafayette, agreeably to the Baron's request. 

That a compliance with the 4th and 5th articles of Baron de 
Kalb's letter would be improper at this time, as Congress have not 
made any provision for their own officers, with whom foreign officers 
of equal merit and service will always be considered on a footing." 

(The first paragraph of this resolution alludes to the stipulation 
that Kalb's entrance into the American army was subject to the sanc- 
tion of the Broglies and of the French ministry, and must be revoca- 
ble in default of such approval. He evi.lently feared, as is mentioned 
in the text, that the return of the other French officers who had 
come with him would produce a revulsion of sentiment in the cabinet ; 
but was mistaken in this impression, as appears from the following 
letter of Kalb to Henry Laurens, President of Congress.) 

Camp at Whiteplains, 17th August, 1778. 
" Sir: When Congress were pleased to honor me with the commis- 
sion bf Major General in the army of the United States, your Excel- 
lency may remember my apprehensions of being blamed at home for 
staying almost alone when many others of the French officers that 
came in my company, were refused service and went back. I ac- 
cepted the honor conferred upon me on condition that if I was 



APPENDIX. 307 

disapproved by the king's ministers or by ray friends, I should be at 
liberty to resign whenever I pleased. 

" By a letter just now received from Messieurs the Marshal Duko 
de Broglie and Count de Broglie his brother, I find my conduct ap- 
proved by both as well as by the ministry, as having acted up to the 
purport of my furlough." 



XIII. 
1. kale's oath of allegiance. 

I, John Baron de Kalb, Major General, do acknowledge the Unite! 
States of America to be Free, Independent and Sovereign States, and 
declare, tliat the people thereof owe no allegiance or obedience t > 
George the Third, King of Great Britain ; and I renounce, refuse 
and abjure any allegiance or obetlience to him, and I do swear that 1 
will to the utmost of my power, support, maintain and defend the 
said United States against the said King George the Third, his heirs 
and successors and his or their abettors, assistants and adherents, 
and will serve the said United States in the office of Major General, 
which I now hold, with fidelity, according to the best of my skill and 
understanding. 

John Baron de Kalb. 
Sworn before me. Camp at Valley 
Forge, the 12th day of May, 1778. 
G? Washington. 

2. oaths of the soldiers. 

Head Quarters, Valley Forge, Mat/ 1th, 1778. 

In order to accomplish this very interesting and essential w^ork as 
early as possible, the f dlowlng officers are to administer the oaths, 
and grant certificates to the officers of the Divisions, Brigades, and 
Corps, set against their names, including the Staff: Major-Generul 
Lord Stilling to the officers of the late Conway's Brigades; Major- 
General Marquis De La Fayette, to those of Woodford's and Scott's 
Brigades; Major-General De Kalb to those of Glover's and Larned's 
Brigades, etc., etc. 



308 APPENDIX. 

XIV. 
kalb's cipher. 

(From a letter to his wife from Middlebrook, April 10, 1779.) 

Dans une de mes lettres a Mr. le comte de Broglia 
167 359 607 787 726 657 502 519 1363 250 1277 

je parle de la san t6 de Mr. Gerard, disant que s*il 
S79 1204 204 803 989 607 502 220 342 377 131 472 
vient vite a manquer — ou comme il est possible qu'il 

713 305 836 728 1282 454 103 531515 835 630 

demande son rappel je se rais fort ai s6 de lul 

198 ,1080 825 302 379 298 57 901 156 939 607 385 

succeder dans son minist^re ici. Vols sur cela 

1222 1470 407 1565 368. 622 M Dubois 492 367 

je suis snr que Mr. Gerard a ecrit qu'il se ra 
158 43 986 421 502 220 763 186 953 298 1053 455 537 

re qu'il lui en coiite de ja plus de trente mille livrea 
917 403 941 587 1465 195 776 625 573 86 530 1117 

du si en. II con vient de dire que snivant ce que 
263 238 819 169 116 348 250 227 976 984 170 131 
je t' 6cris de la cherte de toutes choses cela ne peut 
379 702 186 750 185 607 399 270 367 885 739 

etre autrement. Afinque la place ne soit pas courue et 
311 752 458 731 1085 413 497 318 1090 917 

I'a faire solliciter pour moi sous pretexte que je suis tout 
636 550 390 742 1210 322 1430 421 158 582 1161 

a partie et que pu is qu'il m' en coute beaucoup 
836 1212 289 131 823 236 630 716 365 1465 761 

pour servir les etnts la j'ai me rais bien mieux employer 

616 897 357 251 1043 269 536 57 136 848 392 

cette depen~e an service direct du Roi. Dis toujours que 

317 308 115 397 1327 575 77 342 496 131 

je me ru i ne pour mon avan ce ment. Emploie 
158 958 1053 455 413 616 652 637 170 907 392 

y Mr. Dubois M et le Bourgeois de Texterieur. Tu ferais 
1514 502 485 519 1363 195 1248 1112 

tres bien de parler a Versailles a Mr. Mo r eau premier 
695 136 673 622 140 81 502 562 585 271 412 
Secretaire de Vergennes sous pretexte que je t'en prie de 
88 607 809 322 1430 421 379 555 762 607 



APPENDIX. 309 

me ra pel ler a son souvenir et dela tii pour rais 
536 341 733 557 267 407 715 723 244 1112 742 965 
prendre occasion de lui parlez de cette affaire et le prie- 
842 518 195 385 1204 250 401 120 289 769 762 

er de te faire avertir ou d'en avertir Mr. le corate 
405 250 989 821 659 454 162 659 502 615 1363 

de Broglie des quHl se- rait question de re em placer 
873 1277 315 403 298 1078 481 573 609 233 1085 
Mr. Gerard afinque cela soit sollicit^ Mr. Moreau 

502 220 458 367 497 390 616 1210 502 562 

m^nie pour rait me proposer au ministre. Je fe rais en 
604 616 68 951 960 271 1276 890 362 57 365 
sorte que deux ou trois ans en cette place nous donne 

858 131 488 956 593 370 587 560 1083 414 566 
raient de 1' ai sance. 

1054 573 558 156 803 



XV. 

KALB TO THE PRINCE DE MONTBAEEY (PAR M. GERARD). 

Du Camp de Buttermilk Falls, le 31 Aout, 1779. 

MoNSEiGNEUR : Lorsqu'avec votre agreraent, je convins avec les com- 
missionaires americains d'aller servir les Etats TJnis en qualite d'officier 
g6n6ral, j'obtins un cong6 du roi et votre promesse pour des graces 
de sa Majesty proportionnees aux risques d'une entreprise de cette 
nature. J'avais lieu de me flatter qu'on ne me laisserait pas partir 
sans etre brigadier des arraees du roi, mais monsieur le comte de 
Saint Germain ne voulant pas faire de promotion expresse pour moi, 
le brevet de brigadier pour les iles me fut expedie par monsieur de 
Sartine le 6 Novembre 1776. J'esperais que je serais c;impiis dms la 
premiere promotion que le ministre de la guerre ferait (cependant 
jusqu'apr6^ent, je n'ai rien appris a ce sujet) et que cela me ni6nerait 
h devenir dans pea marechal de camp, ?urtout depuis le traits d'al- 
liance du roi a^ec ces 6tats, que l^^s officiers frangais les servant, 
doivent etre avou^s de leur cour et trait^^? en consequence. Ce n'est 
que dans cette espdrance que je me suis determine an parti d'abandon- 
ner ma famille et le soin de nies affaires pour un temi)S considerable, 
pour m'exposer aux accidents de la mer, de la guerre, des fatigues 
d'un climat defavorable et d'une d6pense excessive, miis indispen- 
7 



310 APPE^^IX. 

sable, oecassion^e par la cbert^ exliorbitante de toutes cboses, et le 
nornbre d'officiers frangais qui abondent a ma table; parceque je 
suis le seul g^n^ral major de la nation, ils me cousiderent comme leur 
chef. 

J'ai rhonneur de servir sa Majeste comme officier depuis la fin de 
1743 de la creation dii regiment de Loewendal. Capitaine et aide 
major de 1747. Major de 1756. Le dit regiment ayant 6t6 incor- 
pore en Mars 1760 contre toute equite et Ics lermes expres, accordes 
u feu monsieur le marecbal de Loewendal, lors de la lev^e de ce corps 
(qu'il ne serait jamais ni r^forme ni traits differemment des regi- 
ments d' Alsace, Saxe, la Mark, Royal Suedois et Royal Bavi^re). 
En conservant de moins anciens a son prejudice, je perdis par 
cette incorporation dix liuit luille livres du plus clair de iiion patri- 
moine, que j'avais donnees, avec I'attache de monsieur le comto 
d'Argeiison, ministre de la guerre, d'alors pour la m;ijorite du dit 
regiment, independamment de mon tj-aitement de 4050 livres comma 
major d'un ancien regiment qui fut r^duit a 1800 livres comme 
capitaine d'Anhalt qui re^ut le premier bataillon de Loewendal. 

Tant de desagrements ne me firent rien diminuer de mon zele 
pour le service du roi. J'acceptai en Mai 1760 des lettres de service 
d'aide marecbal general des logis de I'arm^e sons les ordres de Mon- 
sieur le marecbal de Broglie et j'tn continual les fonctions jusqu'a la 
fin de la guerre en 1763. Je fus fait lieutenant colonel en Mai 1761. 
Tons mes cadets d'Etat major sont brigadiers ou mar^cbaux de camp. 
J'ai constamment re>t6 a I'arm^e pendant toute la dur6e des guerres 
de Flandre et d'Allemagne. 

A la paix Mons. le due de Choisenl me donna di s appointements 
de reforme jusqu'a ce qu'il put me replaoer a la tete d'un regiment 
allemand, ce qui a la verity n'eut jamais lien, soit par oubli de sa 
part, soit par manque d'importunite de la mienne. En Aout 1767 il 
me fit appeler, m'expedia un ordre pour etre employe a la i:econnais- 
sance des cotes maritimes de Calais et de Flandre, mais cbingea 
aussitot cette destination en une comn)is!^ion particuliere de confiance 
])our la Hollande et suivant les circonstances pour le Nord de I'Ani^- 
rique sous de orandes promesses de faveur et d'avjincemenr, qu'il n'a 
n^anmoins point reniplies a mon retour (qu »iqu'il fut tres-content du 
compte qne je lui rendis a la finj^e 1768) probablement par la multi- 
plicity d'afiaires plus importantes; et qu'en suite, quand je I'en fis 
lesouvenir et qu'il me renouvela ses promesses, son deplaceraent 
subit ne lui en laissa pas le temps. Messieurs Gayots, Toullon, 



APPENDIX. 311 

Chariot et si je ne me trompe, Monsieur de Saint Paul, m'ont blam6 
de n'avoir pas demand^ a 6tre fait brigadier avant mon depart en 
1767, que je I'eusse 6te sans difficulte. 

Je ne repeterai pas tous les dangers auxquels ce voyage m'a ex- 
pose. Le corapte de ma mission consign^ au depot de la guerre fait 
mention d'une parti des divers accidents, comme mon naufrage pr^s 
Staten Island, le 28 Janvier 1768, d'avoir echapp6 seul de neuf, aux 
fcffets du froid excessif endure pendant 13 heures sans abris, en 
sortant des tiots, les autres huit etant raorts pendant la nuit meme, ou 
]!eu apres. Je dirai seulement et puis le dire avec raismi que ce que 
j'ai souffert pendant ce voyage, passerait la croyance si cela n'6tiiit 
pas de notoriety publique, et si fort au dessus de la classe ordinaire 
des services, que j'eus-e du. avoir les plus grandes recompenses. 

C'est sans dome a vous, Monseigneur, que cet acte de justice est 
reserve a faire et j'ose m'en flatter. 11 y a plus de deux ans que je 
sers les Etats Unis en qualite de general major, le grade le plus 61eve 
dans leurs armees apres le cummandaat en chef de toutes leurs forces, 
et comrae depuis leur independauce recoimue par le roi, jene mecroia 
plus libre de quitter sai:s vos ordres ou permission, jecontinuerai a lea 
servir, taut que la guerre dureraou que raa saut6 me le permettra, a 
moi.is d'ordres contraires, et aux conditions, tcnite fois que cela nie 
conduise a mon but. Mon absence de chez inoi, les risques de la guerre, 
les dangers a cimrir de la part des ennemis internes du pays, lea 
fatigues, le mal ^tre, h^ climat, ladepense, enfin tous les sacrifices que 
je fais, doivent me m^riter vos bontes, j'y compte et je voussuppliede 
me les acorder, en vous cliargeant, Monseigneur, de mon avancement 
auquel toutes les autres graces, dont je pourrais etre susceptible, doi- 
vent c6der. II y en a cependant une autre, qui me conviendrait et 
une qui me serait necessaire, c'est le grand cordon de I'ordre du merite 
milit:dre, et des secours en argent. Si j'^tais riciie, je ne parlerais 
pas des graces pecuniaires, mais ma fortune 6tant born^e, il n'est paa 
juste non plus de sacrifier le bien, qui sera un jour necessaire a mes 
fils pour les so^itenir au service de leur maitre, ni de m'orer la facuM 
de i)ouvoir marier ma fiUe. Madame de Kalb me gronde fortement a 
cette occasion, je lui r6coraande d'avoir I'honneur de se plaindre a 
vo.is, Monseigneur, et de vous engager a y trouver un remede. 

J'ai souvent 6t6 tente de vous rendre compte des operations denoa 
armees americaines et anglaises, mais n'ayant pas de chiffres, je n'ai 
pas ose le risquer. Les lettres prises par les ennemis etant coramu- 
u6ment rendues publiques, de plus fortes raisons encore, m'ont em- 



312 APPENDIX. 

p8cli6 de voiis envoyer des plans, que je me reserve de vous reraettre 
vous meme a mon retour. 

Je suis avec respect 

Monseigneur Votre etc. 

P. S. Le 10 Novembre m§me camp. 

Je profite du depart de Monsieur Gerard, que je regarde comme 
une voie s<ir pour faire passer celle ci, j*y eusse joint quelques plana 
si nos equipages n'etaient pas a une trop grande distance du camp. 



XVI. 



GENERAL WASHINGTON TO THE PEESIDENT OF CONGRESS. 

Head Quarters, April 3cZ, 1780. 

Sir: I have frequently had the honor to address Congress on the 
subject of those orps, which are unconnected with the lines of par- 
ticular States. Satisfied of the numerous perplexities under which 
they labor, it is with pain and reluctance I trouble tliem with repeated 
representations of the same nature; but in the present case it is so in 
dispensable that something should be done, that I cannot forbear the 
repetition, however disagreeable. The situation of the officers of 
these corps is absolutely insupportable. Unless something effectual 
can be done to make it more comfortable, it is impossible they can 
remain in the service. The resolutions of Congress for making them 
part of the State quotas has partial operation, and the benefit result- 
ing to a few has only served to establish a contrast that embitters the 
sufferings of the rest. ITothing can be conceived more chagrinitig 
than f(Vl' an officer to see himself destitute of every necessary while 
another, not only in the service of the same government, engaged in 
defending the same cause, but even in the same regiment, and some- 
times standing by his side in tlie same company, is decently if not am- 
ply provided. Enthusiasm alone can support him in a moment's per- 
severance, but even t!iis principle must give way to a necessity so 
continued and hopeless. Daily applications are made to me to know 
whether there is a prospect of relief, always accompanied with a de- 
claration, that it is impossible any longer to endure the extremities to 
which they are driven. 

I entreat the attention of Congress to this matter. If there is no 
way to make provision for the officers, it would be better to dissolve 
the corps, incorporate the men with the regiments belonging to the 



APPENDIX. 313 

State lines, and let the officers retire with pay and subsistence, and 
such other emoluments as may he enjoyed by others after the war. 
In their present state, they are actually suffering every inconvenience, 
in fruitless expectations of a remedy that will perhaps never come ; 
those who have less resource, less zeal, or less fortitude, are resigning 
from day to day. A relaxation from care in the interior of the regi- 
ments must be a necessary consequence; and many valuable men will 
b*^ gradually lost to the service, who might be saved. It; is much bet- 
ter, therefore, that the expedient suggested should be adopted, than 
that things should remain as now circumstanced. But if it were pos- 
sible to obviate this necessity, it were much to be wished, as it would 
preserve many of our best officers to the army, who would with in- 
finite reluctance quit the field, while the defence of their country 
called for iheir services. 

Before I conclude, I think it my duty to touch upon the general 
situation of the army at this juncture. It is absolutely necessary that 
Congress should be apprised of it, for it is difficult to foresee what may 
be the result; and as very serious consequences are to be appre- 
hended, I should not be justified in preserving silence. There never 
has been a stage of the war, in which the dissatisfaction has been so 
general or alarming. It has lately, in particular instances, worn 
features of a very dangerous complexion. A variety of causes has 
contributed to this ; the diversity in the terms of enlistment^, the ine- 
quality of the rewards given for entering into the service, but still more 
the disparity in the provisions made by the several States for their re- 
spective troops. The system of State supplies, however dictated in the 
commencement by necessity, has proved in its operation pernicious be- 
yond description. An army must be raised, paid, subsisted, and regu- 
lated upon an equal and unif rm principle, or the confusion and discon- 
tents are endless. Little less than the dissolution of the army would 
have been long since the consequence of a different plan, had it not been 
for a spirit of patriotic virtue, both in officers and men, of which there 
are few examples, seconded by the unremitting pains that have been 
taken to compose and reconcile them to their situation. But these 
will not be able to hold out mucb longer against the influence of causes 
constantly operating, and every day with some new aggravation. 

Some States, from their internal abilities and local advantages, 

furnish their troops pretty amply, not only with clothing, but with 

many little comforts and conveniences ; others supply them with some 

necessai-ies, but on a more contracted scale ; while others have it in 

14 



314 APPSINDIX. 

their power to do little or nothing at all. The officers and men in 
the routine of duty mix daily and compare circumstances. Those 
who fare worse than others of course are dissatisfied, and have their 
resentment excited, not only against their own State, but against the 
Confederacy. They become disgusted with a service that makes such 
injurious distinctions. The officers resign, and we have now scarcely 
a sufficient number left to take care even of the fragments of corps 
which remain. The men have not this resource. They murmur, 
brood over their discontent, and have lately shown a disposition to 
enter into seditious combinations. A new scene is now opening, 
which I fear wi)l be productive of more troublesome effects than any 
thing that has hitherto taken place. Some of the States have adopted 
the measure of making good the depreciation of the money to their 
tro »ps, as well for the past as for tlie future. If this does not become 
general, it is so striking a point, that the consequences must be un- 
speakably mischievous. I enter not into the propriety of this measure 
in the view of finance, but confine myself to its operation in the army. 
Nei her do I mean to insinuate, that the liberality of particular States 
has been carried to a blamable length. The evil I mean to point out 
is the inequality of the different provisions, and this is inherent in the 
present system. It were devoutly to be wished that a plan ccmld be 
devised by which everything relating to the army could be conducted 
on a general principle, under the direction of Congress. This alone 
can give harmony and consistence to our military establishment, and 
I am persuaded it will be infinitely conducive to public economy. I 
hope I shall not be thought to have exceeded my duty in the unre- 
served manner in which I have exhibited our situation. Congress, I 
flatter myself, will have the goodness to believe, that I have no other 
motives than a zeal for the public service, a desire to give them every 
necessary information, and an apprehension for the consequences of 
the evils now experienced. 

I have the honor to be, etc. 



APPENDIX. 315 

XVII. 
COLONEL NICHOLAS ROGERS, OF BALTIMORE, TO GENERAL HENRY LEE.* 

Ne-w Yobk, 2ith January, 1810. 

My Dear Sir: Respecting my good and old friend the Baron 
de Kalb, about whom we have formerly had some conversation, I 
wish I could give you such information as would contribute to make 
your intended publication interesting as the world will naturally 
expect from your pen ; but the long lapse of time and other circum- 
stance.-^, may probably, contrary to your expectations, render it 
rather scanty ; however, such as it is, I am happy to place it at your 
service. 

In frequent conversations with him on the affairs of our country 
— then almost the only topic of conversation — he lias repeatedly told 
me of his having been in this country between the years 1763 and 
1765, in a concealed character, — as a German travelling for his pleas- 
ure. This he did, from one end of the continent to the other ; and, 
as I know him to have been an acute observer, he must have picked 
up a great deal of information for the French Court, by which, I 
have no doubt, he was expressly employed for that particular \>m'- 
pose. 

Speaking the English language well, and possessing the most cim- 
ciliating and condescending manners, he had it in his power to 
insinuate himself everywhere, from the drawing-room down to the 
grog-shop, and be assured that he culled from every group something 
appertaining to his mission, and marked well, in every countenance 
even, and conversation, the particular partialities and antipathies toW' 
ards the two great leading nations of Europe, Great Britain and France. 
He often declared to me that such was the universal prepossession in 
favor of the former, and the almost instinctive hostility to the latter, 
that he sincerely believed and often said that nothing could have 
induced the Americans to have revolted against the mother-country 

* Rogers had been Kalb's aid in Valley Forge and at the lines between 
Elizabethtown and Amboy. When writing his memoirs on the revolution in 
the South, Henry Lee applied to Rogers for information about Kidb. The 
above letter was the reply. I found it in the little pamphlet published by 
J. Spear Smith. The errors in them, growing out of shps of memory, are 
corrected in the text ,• some of the statements are exaggerated ; nevertheless 
the production is highly interesting. 



316 APPEND€X. 

but the highly injudicious and short-sighted conduct of the British 
ministry, whom he frequently ridiculed for their egregious folly in so 
wantonly casting oif such an inestimable and powerful auxiliary. 

He has often told ine that, in all his travels from North to South, 
lie could find nobody of any consequence, either native or British, 
who did not think that Old England was the ne pltis ultra and per- 
fection of all human power. 

In the latter part of his residence amongst us, in his assumed 
character, he became, by some accident, suspected, was taken up, and 
was, I believe, put into prison for a few days. However, he soon 
made his way good and was released, for on examining his papers 
and b.iggage, nothing could be found to implicate him, because he 
never then kept, as he told me, anything like a manuscript, trusting 
all to his memory, which T knew to be great. It was hardly possi- 
ble to find a man more completely suited to such a mission, his 
wonderful sobriety and temperance at table being alrao:.t to excess 
and without example. 

In Europe, I believe, he was engaged chiefly in the Quarter- 
master Department, where, from his great aptitude for detail and minu- 
tiae, lie must have been valuable. Had we here employed him in that 
line he might have been of great service, for we frequently felt many 
inconveniences and suffered much from our ill-judged arrangements 
and want of foresight. 

Besides his extreme temperance, sobriety and prudence, with his 
great simplicity of manners which highly fitted him for his under- 
taking, he had also many of the other qualifications for a soldier, 
such as patience, long-sufi'ering, strength of constitution, endurance--i 
of hunger and thirst, and a cheerful submission to every inconveni- ; 
ence in lodging, for I have known Idm,' repeatedly, to arrange his 
portmanteau as a pillow, and wrapping his great horsem.-iirs cloak 
around him stretch himselt before the fire and take as comfortable a . 
nap as if upon a bed of eider-down. He would rise before day, liglit 
h's candles and work till nine, then take a slice of dry bread with a 
gla-s of water, and go to work again until about twelve or one, when 
he would ride to headquarters, pick up the news of the day, and 
return to dinner. This meal consisted of a little soup and a shin of 
beef, or of a dry tasteless round, with his favorite beverage, 
water. After this he would go to work again, and so continue until 
dark, when, without using his candle, he would get to bed, that he 
might rise at the earliest hour in the morning. This was his mode 



APPENDIX. 317 

of life generally, whilst we were at the Valley Forge, where we all 
suflered not a little. 

In size, he was a perfect Ariovistiis, being upwards of six feet, 
and fully equal to the fatigues of a soldier. He would often walk 
twenty or thirty miles a day without sigh, or complaint, and, indeed, 
often preferi-ed that exercise to riding. His complexion and skin 
were remarkable, being as fair and fresh as those Df a youth. 

The observations and information of so judicious a person as 
Baron do Kalb, would help much to open our eyes to the conduct of 
the French court during our contest, particularly during the earlier 
part of it, for it was incomprehensible to us and to the world in gen- 
eral, why the French should be so long timidly hesitating whether they 
should take an unequivocal part in our favor, when, apparently, there 
never was so good an opportunity offered to a rival nation, to injure 
an opponent, so eternally and deadly hostile. 

xvin. 

GENERAL HENRY LEE ON KALB. 

(From his Memoirs of the War in the Southern Department of the United StateB. 
Appendix D, p. 424 et seq.)* 

General Baron de Kalb was a German by birth, and from the best 
information obtainable must have served during the war of 1756 in 
some inferior stations of the quartermaster-general's department in 
the imperial army, operating with that of his most christian Majesty, 
it being well ascertained by his acquaintances in our army, that he 
was intimately versed in the details of that department. Towards 
the close of that war he must have been despatclied by the French 
court to North America, as he himself often mentioned his having 
traversed the then British provinces in a concealed character ; the 
object of which tour cannot be doubted, as the baron never failed, 
when speaking of the existing war, to express his astonishment, how 
any government could have so blundered as to efface the ardent and 
deep affection which to his own knowledge existed on the part of the 
colonies to Great Britain previous to the late rupture; a preference 
equalled only by their antipathy to the French nation, which was so 

* Thft reader of these pages will be prepared to sift the truth from the 
poetry contained in this very interesting sketch, so that it would be quite su- 
perfluous to enter into extended dissertations here. 



318 APPEND€X. 

powerful as to induce the baron to consider it, as he called it, in- 
stinctive. 

Just before the peace our incognitus, becoming suspected, was ar- 
rested; and for a few days he was imprisoned. On examination of 
his baggage and papers nothing could be found confirming the suspi 
cion which had induced his arrest, and he was discharged. Such 
discovery was not practicable, as during his tour, the baron himself 
declared that he relied entirely upon his memory, which was singu- 
larly strong, never venturing to commit to paper the information of 
others or his own observations. On the restoration of peace the 
baron returned to Europe, and came once more to America in 
1777 or 1778, recommended to Congress as an experienced soldier 
worthy of confidence. A brigadier in the service of France, he was 
honored by Congress with the rank of major-general and repaired to 
the main army, in which he served at the head of the Maryland di- 
vision, very much respected. Possessing a stout frame, with excel- 
lent health, no officer was more able to encounter the toils of war. 
Moderate in mental powers, as in literary acquirements, he excelled 
chiefly in practical knowledge of men and things, gained during a 
long life by close and accurate investigations of the cause and effete 
of passing events. "We all know that the court of France has 
been uniformly distinguished by its superior address and manage- 
ment in diving into the secrets of every nation, whether friend 
or foe, with whom it has relations. The business of espionage has 
been brought in France to a science, and a regular trained corps, 
judiciously organized, is ever in the service of the court. Of 
this body there is strong reason to believe that the baron was a 
member, and probably one of the chief confidants of that gov- 
ernment in the United States. No man was better qualified for the 
undertaking. He was sober, drinking water only, abstemious to ex- 
cess, living on bread, sometimes on beef-soup, at other times with 
cold beef; industrious, it being his constant habit to rise at five in the 
morning, light his candles, devote himself to writing, which was 
never intermitted during the day but when interrupted by short meals 
or by attention to his official duty, and profoundly secret. He wrote 
in hieroglyphics, not upon sheets of paper as is customary in camps, 
but in large folio books, which were carefully preserved, waiting to 
be transmitted to his unknown correspondent whenever a safe oppor- 
tunity might offer. He betrayed an unceasing jealousy lest his jour- 
nals and his mystic dictionary might be perused, and seemed to be 



APPENDIX. 319 

very much in dread of losing his baggage, which in itself was too 
trifling to be regarded, and would only have attracted such unvarying 
care from the valuable paper deposit. He never failed to direct his 
quartermaster to place him as near the centre of the army as was al- 
lowable, having an utter aversion to be in the vicinity of either flank 
lest an adventuring partisan should carry off his baggage. What be- 
came of his journals is not known, but very probably he did not vent- 
ure to take them into South Carolina; what is most probable, he 
placed such as remained in the hands of the French minister for 
transmission to Paris when he was ordered to the South. If he con- 
tinued to write, when marching to South Carolina, his progress must 
have been slow, as he was necessarily much engaged in the duties of 
his command, which became multiplied by the extreme difficult^' with 
which subsistence was procurable. Whether his baggage was capt- 
ured is not known to me; but it cannot be doubted that his papers 
did not fall into the hands of the enemy; as in sucli event we should 
probably have heard not only of the fact but also of their contents. 
No man surpassed this gentleman in simplicity and condescension, 
which gave to his deportment a cast of amiability extremely ingra- 
tiating, exciting confidence and esteem. Although nearer seventy 
than sixty years of age, such had been the temperance of his life that 
ho not only enjoyed to the last day the finest health, but his counte- 
nance still retained the bloom of youth, which circumstance very 
probably led to the error committed by th^se who drew up the in- 
scription on the monument erected by order of Congress. This dis- 
tinguished mark of respect was well deserved. H 

XIX. 

kalb's pkoposal to congress, 

(written by Kalb himself and found among the papers appertaining to Silas Deane]. 

Le Baron de Kalb being advised by some Generals of the highest 
reputation, and by several other noblemen of the first rank in thi.; 
realm, to serve the cause of liberty in America, he accordingly offers 
his services to the most honorable Congress on the following terms : 

1. To be made a Major General of the American troops at the 
appointments of the Major Generals in that service, with all other 
perquisites belonging to tLat lunk, besides a particular sum to be 
allowed to him annually, which he will not determine, but rely on it 



320 APPENI^IX. 

for the Congress, hoping they will consider the difference there is 
between their own countrymen, who are in duty bound to defend their 
all, and a foreigner who, out of his own accord, offers his time, sets 
aside his family affairs to hazard his life for the American liberties. 
The said appointment to begin from this day, November the seventh, 
1776. 

2. That Mr. Deane will furnish him presently, & before embarking 
with a sum of twelve thousand livres french-money, namely : C,000 to 
be considered and given as a gratification for the necessary expenses 
attending such an errand, and th' other G,000 as an advance upon his 
appointment. 

3. That Capt. Dubois Martin and another Gentleman whom Le 
Baron de Kalb shall nominate in time, may be agreed as Majors to be 
his aids de camp, at the appointment of American officers of the same 
Eank, and the sum of 3,000, or at least 2,600 be paid to each of them 
presently, or before embarking, the half of which as a gratification, & 
th' other half as an advance, the said appointments beginning too from 
this day. 

4. That in case the Peace was made at their landing in America, 
or that the Congress would not grant these demands, and ratify the 
present agreement, or that the Baron de Kalb himself should on any 
other account, & at any time incline to return to Europe, that he be 
allowed to do so, and besides be furnished with a sufficient sum of 
money for the expenses of his coming back. 

On the above conditions I engage and promise to serve the Amer- 
ican States to the utmost of my abilities; to acknowledge the authority 
and every act of the most honorable Congress ; be faithfull to the 
country as if my own ; obey to superiors committed by that lawful 
power, and be, from this very day, at the disposal of Mr. Deane for 
my embarkation, and in such a vessel and harbour as he shall think 
fit. Witness my hand, in Paris, November the seventh, in the year 
one thousand seven hundred seventy-six. 

De Kalb. 

Reed, of Silas Deane, at Paris, Novr. 22d, 1776, Sixteen Thousand 
Eight Hundred Livs. on acct. of the above. 

N. B. Paid 8,800 in cash. 

8,000 by a Bill on Messrs. Delaps. 



APPENDIX. 321 

XX. 

KALB TO SILAS DEANE. 
(From "The Magazine of American History", Vol. IX, p. 384.) 

On Boabd the Ship la Victoirb 
AT THE Passage*) in Spain. 
17. April, 1777. 

Sir : — I had the honour of writing to you four days ago in a 
sad mood of mind, about all the difficulties which seemed to obstruct 
M. Le Marquis de la Fayette's generous designs; as I made you a par- 
taker of bad news, I think it a piece of justice to impart to you a good 
one. The Marquis guessing by all the letters he received, that the 
Ministers granted and issued orders to stop his sailing, out of mere 
compliance with the requests of M. Le Due d'Ayens, and that in reality 
neither the King nor any body else could be angry with [him] , for so 
noble an IGnterprise, he took upon him to come here again and to pursue 
his measures. He arrived this morning nine of the clock to the great 
comfort of all his fellow Passengers. M. de Mauroy arrived at the same 
time. So we shall put out to sea again by the first wind, and strive to 
get to the Continent directly as much as possible. All these Gentlemen 
present you with their most sincere Compliments and good wishes. 

I wrote to M. le Comte de Broglie as well as to Mad. de Kalb, if 
they had any letters to send to me, before I could give them an account 
of myself after arrival at your army, to put them under cover, directed 
to Mr, Sam. Shoemaker at Philadelphia, and desire you to get them 
over when opportunities will offer. I depend on this and all other 
occasions on your goodness and friendship, to which and Mr. Car- 
michaels I recommend myself particularly and am with all possible 
respect, Honoured Sir, your most etc. De Kalb. 

This letter will go by the to-morrow's Post, but you shall hear from 
me the day of our putting under sail. 

The Marquis charges me peculiarly to acquaint you that his fear 
of involving you in some disagreeable dilemma and of doing hurt to 
our friends interest at the French court, was what determined him 
most to comply with the Kings orders and to go back to Bordeaux ; be- 
ing willing to fall alone a sacrifice to resentment and make nobody share 
his misfortune, as long as he could believe these orders serious, and 
that it is only since he is sure of you and your causes security he as- 
sumed anew his most darling project. 

*) LOS PASAGES 



322 APPENDIX 



XXI. 



DE KALB, GATES AND THE CAMDEN CAMPAIGN. 

(From "The Magazine of American History", Vol. "ST:II, Part. II, p. 496 flf. 

N. Y., 1882, A. S. Barnes & Co. 

The publication of the correspondence and orders of General 
Gates, bearing upon the battle of Camden, and the vigorous defence 
of that officer by Mr. Stevens, which appeared in the October Number 
of the Magazine for 1880, invite a restudy of that disastrous cam- 
paign. A fresh fact is brought out in a letter from Lord Rawdon, 
published in the Third Report of the British Historical Manuscript 
Commission, Avhich revives the point whether Gates did not make a 
mistake in declining to attack the British at Little Lynch s Creek, on 
or about August 10th. Rawdon, then in command, had taken post 
on the southern bank of the stream, and was known to have a force in- 
ferior in numbers to that of the Americans. His position, on the 
other hand, was naturally strong. Tarleton, in his account of the 
campaign, claims that Gates ought immediately to have moved up 
the creek, crossed it above, marched directly to Camden, and com- 
pelled Rawdon to meet him at a disadv^antage, or abandon the place. 
Bancroft says on this point : „By a forced march up the stream Gates 
could have turned Rawdon's flank and made an easy conquest of 
Camden." Johnson, in his life of Greene, takes substantially the 
same view. In Rawdon's letter referred to, we now have the state- 
ment that De Kalb did actually urge an attack upon the enemy at the 
creek. The communication is from the English general to his mother, 
the Countess of Moira, and the material part, explaining why he de- 
clined to fight Gates before Cornwallis arrived, runs as follow^s : 

"Cabip Near Twelve Mile Cbeek, 
"On the Feontieb of Nohth Carolina, Sept. 19, 1780, 

" Had I thought the tinsel of unweighed applause an ob- 
ject superior to the consciousness of having acted right, I should have 
given Mr. Gates battle whilst the command remained with me. It was 
in my power ; I had fair prospect of success ; the reputation to be at- 
tained was great ; and if I was beaten there would have been credit in 
making a bold attempt, for the failure of which the disparity of force 
would have been a sufficient apology. But I felt that the step would be 
false ; for, by maintaiijing the conduct which I pursued, I was certain 



APPENDIX. 323 

of forcing the enemy either to retire across the Pedee, to attack me 
upon terms ahnost hopeless for them, or to take the ruinous part which 
they actually did embrace. 

"De Kalb, who was a good officer, saw so clearly the consequences 
of reducing their attacks to one point, and thereby enabling me to 
unite my detachements, that he strenuously advised Gates to pass 
Lynches Creek and fight me, at all events : this was related to me by 
De Kalb's aid-de-camp (a relation of the M. do la Fayette), who was 
made prisoner. Gates rejected the advice, threw himself across the 
country into the other road above Hanging Rock Creek, and gave us 
three days to prepare to meet him, in a country likewise very favor- 
able for us. 

"Since that action the sickness of the troops, added to want of 
provisions and almost every kind of ^stores has detained us inactive. 
We are now in march towards Hillsborough, where Gates has collected 
a small body of militia. At present there is no prospect of serious op- 
position, but I cannot believe that the Congress will not make an effort 
to stop the advance of our successes. We have reason to hope that 
we shall be joined by the greater part of the North Oarolinians, who 

have certainly given strong proofs of faithful attachement to us 

It is now ten weeks since we have heard from New York You 

must have been astonished at our warfare here after the representations 
which we perceive were made to you respecting the loyalty and peace- 
able state of His Majesty's Province of South Carolina." 

The aid who gave the information Eavvdon refers to, was Chevalier 
Dubuysson, holding the rank of Lieutenant- Colonel, and the same who 
is commonly represented as preventing his general from being put to 
death on the field at Camden. Whether De Kalb meant that Gates 
should attack Rawdon directly in front or cross at a more favorable 
point and fight him as soon as possible, is not distinctly stated, but it 
is worth noticing that he did in eifect propose what Tarleton, Avho was 
on the spot, was of opinion should be done, and what Rawdon himself 
impliedly admits to have been excellent advice. The point with De 
Kalb evidently was : Push the enemy and prevent the conce^utration 
of his forces. Friends of Gates will defend the course he took in 
marching around by way of Rugeley's Mills, by showing that the de- 
lay brought him a large reinforcement of Virginia Militia ; but 
did it not also work in equal if not greater proportion to the enemy's 
advantage ? 



324 APPENDIX. 

It is not to be inferred from bis advice at Lynch s Creek, that De 
Kalb was aggressive in this campaign. No one can read Colonel 
Horry's quaint reminiscences in his Life of Marion, without observing 
how anxiously he deprecated Gates' extraoKlinary haste and rashness 
in pushing down toward the enemy from North Carolina. Horry, 
who acted as aid to De Kalb up to the battle of Camden, states on the 
weary march through the pine barrens, where "a forlorn hope of eater- 
pillars"' must have starved, the general "frequently foretold the ruin 
that would ensue". At Lynch 's Creek he saw a possible advantage to 
be gained, and urged it ; otherwise he constantly advised caution and 
better preparation, but Gates would take no counsel, unless in the last 
extremity, but his own. 

xxn. 

Kalb to Baron Holtzendorff in Paris. 

A Peteesbuegh en Virginie, le 29 May, 1780. 

MoN Cher Amy, Je n'ay pu attendre a Philadelphie I'arrivee de 
M. le Ms. de Lafayette, mais j'y ay laisse le Capt. Paskke, qui m'a 
prie de I'admettre a ma famille pendant ma marche an Sud, pour le 
voir et m'apporter mes lettres de France. Je viens done de recevoir 
celle que vous m'avez fait Thonneur de m'ecrire par luy le I'er mars. 
J'eusse bien desire pouvoir causer avec luy sur differents objets, s'il 
m'avoit ete possible de reculer mon depart. 'J^'on me presse d'arriver an 
secours de Charlestown et je rencontre des difficultes sans nombre 
dans ma marche, il semble que tout soit calcule pour s'opposer au bien 
du Service. J'ay a mes ordres les Troupes de Maryland, de Delaware^ 
le Corps de Lee avec un Eegt. d'artillerie et douze pieces de canons. 
L'on m'a promis une Jonction de Mih'ce de cet etat cy et en Nord 
Caroline, mais la lenteur qu'on met en tout, ne me donne pas de 
grandes Esperances d'en obtenir ou de pouvoir les attendre : je feray 
partir demain et les jours suivans mes Troupes en Trois Divisions, si 
toutes fois l'on me donne les chariots dont j'ay besoin et qui me sent 
promis depuis longtems; avec toute la diligence que je pourray mettre 
dans ma marche. II est possible que le sort de Charlestown soit decide 
avant "mon arrivee, car quoiqu'ils ayent ete menaces depuis long- 
tems d'un siege, que les Ennemies ayent ete dans le Yoisinage 
longtems avant d'avoir pu investir la place qu'on avoit par con- 
sequent du tems de reste pour I'approvisionner, malgre cela je crains 
qu'on ait neglige ce point si essentiel a une defense, et qu'on ne s'en 
soit occupe que quand il n'en etoit plus tems. \ 



APPENDIX. 325 

Le projet de debarquement en Angleterre a sans doute ete aban- 
donne entierement ? puisque M. de Lafayette qui etoit de cette armee 
la, est revenu icy. Cela surprend beaucoup de monde, on croit, qu'a 
moins qu"il ne soit charge de quelque commission importante pour le 
Congres, il ne seroit pas revenu en Amerique, et com me rien n'a trans- 
pire jusqu'a present, cela donne lieu a diverses conjectures. 

Yous dites done que huit Regiments devoient s embarquer en avril 
et cela peutetre pour H. — Mess, de Fleury et Ja^ Colombe ecrivent 
qu'ils doivent revenir incessamment, ne seroient ils pas de la derniere 
Expedition ? 

Je suis fache de ce que vous me mandez de la mauvaise sante de 
Mad. de Holzendorff ; je luy souhaite un parfait et prompt retab- 
lissement. Comme il est possible que Yous ne soyez pas a Paris a 
Tarrivee de cette lettre, elle sera pour Elle. 

Yous me dites n'avoir reyu aucune de mes nouvelles depuis Xbre 
1778. Je vous ay cependant ecrit de Philadelpliie au commencement 
de 1779 et plusieurs fois depuis, soit en reponse aux Yotres soit au- 
trement, peutetre que mes lettres Yous parviendront encore ? je vous ay 
marque dans le tems que votre coffre s'est retrouve et de la facon dont 
j ay dispose, votre Portefeuille et la Yeste sont chez le Docteur Phile 
pour etre delivres sur votre ordre. Le reste a ete vendu a 1000 Dol- 
lars qui dans le tems etoient a dix pour un, par consequent valant 500 
Livres de France, et jay laisse a Yotre option cette somme ou un Billet 
d'Emprunt de 1000 Dollars que je m 'en suis procure, depuis ce tems les 
choses ont changees en prix. Soixante en Papier en donnent difficile- 
ment un en especes actuellement, et les denrees et marchandises aug- 
mentent continueUement de prix- jPTout coute le double, meme en payant " 
avec de Tor, de ce que les choses valoient il y a 18 mois. Ma marche 
va me couter des sommes immenses. Je ne puis pas me faire suivre 
par mon Equipage, et suis par consequent oblige de vivre en Routte 
dans les auberges ou d'autres maisons ou Ton paye egalement, meme 
le logement. Ma solde de six mois suffit a peine pour un jour de de- 
penses inevitables. Je voudrais bien etre chez moy, ou ne m'etre pas 
embarque dans cette Galere. 

J'ay et J dirigc quelqu'un des jour passe sur ma Route de prendre 
mon Quartier dans une maison particuliere pour une nuit. On m'y 
donna un mauvais soupe et pour boisson du Grog. Pourtant le matin 
sans dejeuner mon compte se montait pour quatre Maitres et trois 
Domestiques a 850 Dollars, et la maitresse de la Maison me dit poli- 



326 A P P E N Ifl X . 

iiient quelle n'a vait rien mis pour le logement quelle le laisse a ma 
Discretion mais que 3 ou 400 Dollars ne seroient pas de trop pour 
I'Embarras qu'elle a eu avec ma famille. Ces gens pretendent qu'ils 
sacrifieroient tout pour la cause de leur Liberte. Tout est a proportion 
de cela, un cheval mediocre coute 20,000 Dollars, je dis Yingt mille. 

Adieu mon cher amy, je suis avec le plus parfait et le plus sin- 
cere attachement, tout a Vous 

Le Bon De Kalb. 

XXITI. 

[Public— No. 30. j 

AN ACT to provide for the erection of a monument to the memory of Major General 
the Baron De Kalb. 

Whereas, in October, seventeen hundred and eighty, the Congress 
of the United States passed the following resolution: 
"In Congress, October, 1780. 

"Resolved, That a monument be erected to the memory of the 
late Major-General the Baron De Kalb, in the city of Annapolis, in 
the State of Maryland, with the following inscription : 

"'Sacred to the memory of the Baron De Kalb, knight of the Royal 
Order of Militar3'- Merit, brigadier of the armies of France, and major- 
general in the service of the United States of America. Having served 
with honor and reputation for three years, he gave a last and glorious 
proof of his attachment to the liberties of mankind and the cause of 
America in the action near Camden, in the State of South Carolina, 
on the sixteenth of August, seventeen hundred and eighty, where, 
leading on the troops of the Maryland and Delaware lines against su- 
perior numbers, and animating them by his example to deeds of valor, 
he was pierced with many wounds, and on the nineteenth following 
expired, in the forty -eighth year of his age. 

'"The Congress of the United States of America, in gratitude to 
his zeal, service, ancftuerit, have erected this monument;'"' Therefore, 

Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That the sum of ten 
thousand dollars be, and the same is hereby, appropriated, out of any 
moneys in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the purpose of 
erecting the monument authorized by the resolution of Congress above 
recited; and the Secretary of the State shall have the management and 
control of the erection of said monument. 

Approved, February 19, 1883. 



APPENDIX. 



327 



M 5 
X ^ 




INDEX 



Abbeville 36 

Abdelkader 94 

Aeneas 177 

Aiguillon, Due d' 76, 78 

Aix-la-Chapelle 6, 10 

Albany 126, 152, 153, 154, 155, 

156, 157 
Albert of Bavaria, Elector 5 
Algiers 83 
Altdorf, town 1 
Alzac, Viscountess d' 75 
Amboy 186, 187 
Amphitrite, ship 88 
Amsterdam 46 
Anhalt, regiment 29, 34 
Annapolis 110, 196, 238, 248 
Ansbacli Bayreuth, margraviate 

254, 256 
Anson court house 213 
Antin, Due d' 14 
Appony 46 

Argenson, Count d' 9, 11 
Ariovistus 240 
Armand, Colonel 199, 205, 222, 

223, 226, 230 
Armstrong 159, 215, 222 
Am and, Saint, General 4 
Arnold, General 150, 152 
Ascanins 176 
Ashley river 191 
Augenheim, village 5 
Augusta, town 213 
329 



Ayen, Due d' 90, 91, 103, 104, 

105, 106, 108 
Baviere, Eoyal, regiment 25 
Bayreuth, margraviate 1, 256, 257 
Beaumarchais 83, 88, 93 
Bedaulx,de, Captain 108,110, 131 
Bedford 175 

Belleisle, Marshal 11, 19, 29 
Bennington 151 
Bentheim, regiment 25 
Bergen, battle of 29 
Bergen op Zoom 6 
Bernis, Abbe 41 
Besanfon 84 
Besset, de 74, 75 
Bethlehem (Moravian settlement) 

117 
Black river 219 
Blanding, A. 251 
Bonne val. Count 21 
Bonvouloir 82 

Bordeaux, 100, 101, 103-107 
Boston 54, 59, 61, 64, 65, 72, 73, 

117, 162, 163 
Bougainville 41 
Boulogne 12 
Boundbrook 167, 171 
Bourbon, dynasty 257 
Bourcet, General 46 
Le Boursier, Captain 101, 108 
Brandenburg-Bayreuth, Margrave 

253, 256 



330 



index: 



Brandywine, battle of 112, 113, 124 
Breton, Capo 66 
Briant, Colonel 226 
Brice 108, 109, 110, 130 
Broglie, Comte de 38, 79, 80, 85, 

86, 89, 92, 93, 94, 100, 102, 

109, 118, 119, 122, 123, 127, 

137, 145, 162, 167, 168, 172, 

178, 241 
Broglie, Due de 26, 29, 30, 31, 

38, 79, 161, 180, 241, 243 
Brouossy near Milon 79 
Brunswick, Ferdinaud of 31, 38 

242 
Brussels 48 
Buckeburg, town 39 
Buffalo ford 202, 211, 214 
Buford, Col. 205 
Burgoyne, General 126, 131, 132, 

148, 164, 203 
Buttermilk Falls 178, 179, 180 
Calais, town 46 
Calcutta 258 
Cambray 8, 16 
Camden, 252, 253 
Campbell, Colonel 190 
Canada 65, 126, 149, 150, 151, 

155, 156 
Captaine, Officer 130 
Carolina, North 197, 199, 200, 

201, 202, 204, 205, 212, 213, 

217, 219, 222, 223, 230, 232, 

235, 250 
Carolinas 190, 215 
Carolina, South 109, 123, 191, 

199, 238, 248, 249, 250, 262 
Castries, Marquis de 35, 77 
CasweU, Maj.-Gen. 202, 205, 213, 
215, 216, 217, 230 



Chaillot, 101 
Chamblee, port 152 
Champlain, lake 151 
Charles, King of Spain 83 
Charles YII., Emperor 19 
Charleston 109, 110, 188, 190, 
191, 192, 195, 197, 198, 199, 
203, 206, 211, 213, 218, 220, 
225 
Charleville 84 
Charlotte 208, 219, 235 
Chatelet, Count 70 
Chatham, court house 188, 206 
Cheraw 213 

Chesapeake, bay 124, 125, 195 
Chester 125 

Choiseul, Due de 11, 35, 39, 40, 
41, 42, 43, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 
50,53, 61, 64, 66, 68, 70, 71, 
72, 75, 76, 78, 80, 82, 86 
Cincinnati, Order of the 244 
St. Clair, General 185, 186 
St. Clair 122 
Gierke, R., General 38 
Clermont 220, 223, 225, 226, 

228 
Clinton, General 170, 171, 173, 

175,179, 190, 191, 198, 218 
Cob Taxton 206 
Coigny, Marshal 5, 105 
Colbe 86 
Colbert 36 
Colmar244 
Cologne 49 

Colombe, de la, Capt. 108, 130 
Compiegne 49 
Conde, Prince of 244 
Connecticut, 64, 165, 171, 173, 
175 



INDEX. 



331 



Constantinople 76, 82 
Contade, Marshal 29 
Conway, General 121, 146, 149, 
150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 
156, 157 
Cornwallis, Lord 190, 204, 213, 
218, 220, 222, 224, 226, 227, 
229, 230,231,234,235, 236, 242 
Corsica 70, 72, 83 
Corwin, M. C. 247 
Coudray, du. Col. 84, 88. 89, 92, 

111, 112, 130, 131 
Courbevoye 36, 37 
Coxe's Mill 205, 206 
Cumberland, Duke of 26 
Danbury 165 
Darby 125 

Deane, Silas 81, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 
89, 91, 92, 94, 97, 107, 108, 
109, 111, 112, 114, 116, 117, 119 
Deane 's "Woods 174 
Deep creek 204 

Deep river 200, 204, 205, 206, 211 
Delaware bay 132 
Delaware regiment 139, 165, 179, 
192, 193, 197, 205, 230, 233, 
234, 236, 238, 246 
Delesser, Colonel 108, 117 
Deuxponts, Max, Prince of 19 
Deuxponts regiment 245 
Dijon 84 
Dixou 232 
St. Domingo 84, 86, 88, 90, 100, 

101 
Donop, Colonel 131, 132 
Dubarry 75, 243 
Dubois 35, 46, 47 
Dubois, Martin 89, 90, 92, 94, 97; 
100, 101, 108, 130 



Dubuysson, Major 108, 110, 117, 

119, 131, 134, 236 
Dulcinea 260 
Dumouriez 42, 76 
Dunkirk, town 11, 46. 88 
Duportail 192 
Durand, embassador 70 
Diisseldorf 25 
Ecluse 6 
Elizabeth, town 165, 185, 186, 

187 
Elk or Elkton 124, 193, 195, 196 \ 
Elysian fields 101 
D'Eon, Chevalier 84 
Erbach, regiment 245 
Erfurt 26 
Erie 139 
Erlangen 1 
Eschenbach, village 1 
D'Estaing, i^dmiral 161, 180, 190 

191 
D'Estree, Marshal 25 

St. Etienne 84 

Eugene, Prince of Savoys 6, 21 

St. Evrard, Abbe 97 

Fairfield 175 

Falmouth 50 

Fayolles, de, Lieut. Col. 91, 108 

Feray 90 

Ferdinand, Prince 96 

Fieffe, author 22 

Fishkill 162, 163, 164 

Fleury, Cardinal 24 

Fleury, Colonel 174, 178 

St. Florentine, Count of 75 

Florida 190 

Fontainebleau 86 

Fontenoy, battle of 6 

Ford, Lieut. CoL 217 



332 



INDEX. 



San Francisco 258 

Frankfort on M. 32 

Franklin, Benjamin 45, 70, 72, 91, 
92, 112 

Franval, Lieut. Col. 108 

Frauenaurach 1 

Frederic II, The Great 3, 5, 6, 25, 
26, 38, 254 

Frederic, Margrave 254 

Freiburg 6 

Furnes, fortress 5 

Gage, General 63 

Gates, General 126, 148, 149, 150, 
151, 152, 153, 154, 155, 156, 
159, 203, 204, 206, 207, 208, 
211, 212, 213, 214, 215, 216, 
217, 218, 219, 220, 221, 222, 
223, 224, 225, 226, 227, 228, 
230, 231, 232, 235, 237 

Geneva 146 

George William, Margrave 253, 254 

Georgetown, Bay of 109, 110, 198 

Georgia 190, 191 

Gerard, French Ambass. 89, 158, 
167, 174 

St. Germain, Count 11, 27, 79, 80, 
81, 82, 84 

Germantown 119, 127, 128 

Geymueller, Lucas 245 

Geymueller, Madame 102 

Ghent 6 

Gimat, de. Major 108, 110, 123 

Gist, General 179, 229, 232, 234, 
235, 236 

Glover, Brigadier 160 

Gneisenau, Lieut. 255 

Goethe, J. Wolfgang 3 

Goshen, County 199, 200 

Gottingen 3, 31 



Grammont 130 

La Grange 109 

Granville 42 

Gravesend 50 

Grebenstein 31 

Greene, General 111, 116, 127, 

159, 186, 203 
Grimaldi, Minister 70, 83 
Guadeloupe, Island 191 
Guiche, Monsieur de la 31 
Gulph's Mill 136 
Gun, Captain 206 
Hague 39, 48, 50 
HaUfax 64, 65, 66, 205, 206 
Hamburg 258 
Hamilton's regiment 226 
Ilastenbeck 26 
Havestraw 171 
Havre 88, 89, 100, 101 
Heath, General 180 
Henry, Patrick 44 
Hercules, ship 50, 51 
Herzogenbusch 49 
Highlands 169, 171, 173, 180 
Hillsborough 198, 200, 205, 206, 

213 
Holmes county 246 
HoltzendorfE,von,Lieut.Col.85,86, 

184, 196 
Hommet, Capt. 50 
Howe, General 123, 124, 126, 131 

132, 133, 134, 135 
Hudson, river- 152 
Huettendorf , village 1 
Huger, General 213 
Huger, Major 110 
Hutten 20 
Huy 6 
Hyder Ali, Sultan 43 



INDEX. 



333 



Ironhill 124 

Ironworks 200 

Isle Royal 65 

St. James, court of 62 

Jamison, Major 198, 199 

Jaquette, aid de camp 233 

Jefferson, Thos. 196, 206 

St. Johns 151, 152 

Johnston, town 153 

Jomini 26 

St. Julien, treasurer 97 

Kalb, John 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 
10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 
18, 22, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 
31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 
39, 46, 47, 49, 50, 51, 53, 56, 
59, 60, 61, 64, 66, 61, 68, 69, 
70, 71, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 
79, 80, 81, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 
89, 97, 99, 100, 101, 102, 103, 
104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 
110, 111, 112, 113, 116, 117, 
118, 119, 121, 122, 123, 127, 
128, 132, 136, 137, 143, 144, 
145, 150, 151, 152, 153, 154, 
155, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 
161, 162, 163, 164, 165, 166, 
167, 168, 172, 174, 175, 176, 
178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 184, 
185, 186, 188, 193, 194, 195, 
196, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202, 
203, 204, 207, 208, 211, 212, 
215, 216, 217, 223, 227, 228, 
229, 232, 233, 234, 236, 237, 
238, 239, 240, 241, 242, 243, 
244, 245, 246, 247, 248, 249, 
250, 251, 252, 253, 254, 256, 
257, 258, 260, 261, 262, 263 

Kalb, Madame de 50, 168, 246 



Kalb, Andrew 2 

Kalb, Anna Maria Carolina 245 

Kalb, Elie de 75, 245 

Kalb, Frederic 244 

Kalb, George 2 

Kalb, Hans 1 

Kalb, John Leonard 1 

Kalb, Leonora 245 

Kalb, Theophile 245 

Kalb, street 248 

Kant, Inmianuel 27 

Karlsbad 3 

Kassel 31 

Kell, von, Eliaa 245 

Kill van KuU 185 

Kings Ferry, fort 171, 175, 178 

Knox, General 111, 122 

Knyphausen, General 242 

Kriegenbronn 2 

Lafayette, Marquis 86, 87, 89, 90, 
91, 99, 100,101,102,103,104, 
105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 
112, 113, 115, 119, 123, 124, 
129, 130, 144, 149, 150, 151, 
152, 153, 154, 156, 157, 159, 
162, 163, 196, 249, 250, 251, 
252, 260 

Lafayette, Madame de 106 

Lafayette, Fort 171 

Lafeld, battle of 6 

Lambert, Marquis de 89 

Lancaster 118, 123, 139, 157 

Landau 28, 33 

Larned, Brigadier 160 

Laurens, Henry, President 144 

Laurens, John 192 

Lee, Major 148, 194, 197, 204, 
224 

Leinburg 1 



334 



INDEX 



Lessing 27 

Lexington 82 

Lincoln 152, 180, 188, 191, 192, 
195, 203 

Lindley's Mill 206 

Lisbon 39 

Little Lynche's creek 218, 219 

Loevvendal, Count of 4, 6, 23, 
223, 243 

Loewendal, regiment 25, 29, 34 

London 11, 50, 54, 61, 68, 253 

Long Island 162, 187 

Lorraine, Prince of 5 

Los Pasages 101, 105, 108 

Louis XI \^. 18, 19, 24 

Louis XY. 5, 36, 76, 79, 80, 254 

Louis XVL 12, 79, 81, 158 

St. Louis, Fort 14 

Louisburg 13 

Lovell 110, 114, 146 

Lusatia, Count of 31 

Luzerne, dela, Chevalier 167, 179, 
180 

Lynch's creek 211, 216, 217, 218 

Machault, Sec. of the Navy 11, 16 

Macleod, Lieut. Col. 229 

Magdeburg 26 

Maine 67 

Malherbes, French min. 82 

Maria Theresia 5 

Marion 220, 225 

La Mark, regiment 25, 29, 245 

Mark's ferry 212 

Marseilles 107 

Martinique 191 

Maryland, Brigade 124, 139, 165, 
179, 185, 192, 193, 194, 195, 196, 
197, 205, 222, 226, 229, 230, 
232, 233, 234, 235, 238, 248 



Massachusetts 64 

Maestricht, siege of 6, 49 

Matson's Ford 135 

Maubeuge 84 

Maurepas 82, 90, 91, 105, 106 

Mauroy, Yicomte de 85, 89, 91, 

92, 93, 108, 112 
Mays Mill 214, 216 
McDougal 150, 171 
Mecklenburg in N. C. 208 
Men in, siege of 5 
Mente creek 133 
Merseburg 26 
Merserau, Mr. 61 
Metz, 5, 79, 84 
Mexico, Gulf of 63 
Middlebrook 165, 167, 169, 171, 

183 
Mifflin, Fort 131, 133 
Mifflin, General 159 
Milford, Lady 255 
Milon la Chapelle 74, 244, 245, 

246 
Minerva, ship 68 
Montbary, Prince de 167, 169 
Montgomery, Fort 150, 178 
Montgomery, Richard 262 
Monte/nard, Marquis de 76, 78 
Montreal 151, 152 
Morande, pamphleteer 84 
Morocco 83 
Morristown 180, 186, 188, 192, 

194, 195 
Moultrie, Colonel 190 
Miinden on the IV eser 31 
Muy, ]\linister of War 79 
Namur 6 
Nancy 9 
Nantes 88, 91, 97, 107 



INDEX, 



335 



Napoleon I. 12, 43, 75 

Napoleon, Louis 257 

Nash, Governor 213, 223 

Nassau, l^rince of 95 

Nelson, Major 206 

Newark 185, 186, 187 

Newbern 73 

Newburg, town 164 

New England 63, 64, 164 

New Hackensack 162 

New Hampshire 73 

New Haven 175 

New Jersey 121, 122, 133, 160, 
164, 165, 171, 180, 186 

Newport 73 

New Spain 58 

New Windsor 171, 177 

New York 50, 59, 67, 68, 72, 124, 
128, 152, 157, 161, 162, 170, 
171, 172, 175, 180, 181, 183, 
186, 191, 192, 193, 195, 258 

Niell, Lieut. Col. 15, 16 

Nieuport 6 

Nixon, General 249 

Noailles, Vicomte de 90, 91, 106 

Noix, Isle aux 152 

Nor walk 175 

Olmiitz 110 

L'Orient 88, 89, 97 

Ostende 6 

Otis, James 44 

Oudenarde 6 

Paoli 72 

Paris 163, 167, 177, 244, 253 

Parker, Admiral 190 

Paul, Jean 257 

Pedee, river 205, 208, 211,212 

Pennsylvania 64, 124, 137, 139, 
152, 157, 164 



Perkiomen, creek 119 

Persigny 4 

Petersburg, Va. 110, 184, 192, 
195, 196, 197, 198 

Pfalzburg 8 

Pfeffel 244 

Philadelphia 49, 50, 51, 53, 54, 
56, 59, 67, 110, 111, 115, 116, 
118, 119, 122, 123, 124, 126, 
131, 132, 134, 159, 160, 167, 
180, 183, 185, 188, 193, 194, 
195, 196, 198 

Philippine Islands 83 

Phyle, Doctor 160, 198 

Pitt, 40, 42, 56 

Pompadour, Mad. de 16, 25, 30, 
39 

Poniatowski, Stanislaus 75 

Pontleroy, de, Agent 43 

Port au Prince 100 

De la Porte 16 

Porterfield, Lieut. Col. 212, 227 

Porto Pico 63 

Portsmouth 117 

Potterfield 222 

Prague 5 

Prevost, General 190 

Princeton 60 

Puetter, Professor 3 

Pulaski, Count 190 

Putnam, General 154 

Pyrmont 3 

Quebec 13, 40, 262 

Quiberon, Bay of 12 

Rainbaux et Cie. 101, 106 

Raucoux, battle of 6 

Rawdon,Lord211, 213, 218, 219, 
220, 221, 222, 224, 226, 229, 
231 



336 



INDEX 



Red bank 122, 131, 133 

Re, Isle of 107 

Reuss, Prince 3 

Rhode Island 64, 153, 154, 161, 

162, 172 
Richelieu, Due de 26, 40, 176 
Richmond, Va. 196, 197, 213 
Roanoke, river 205 
Robais, van, Emilie 36, 86 
Robais, van, Peter 36 
Rockey, river 206 
Rogers, N., Aid de Camp 240 
Rome 39, 176 

Rossbach, battle of 26, 27, 30 
Rossiere, de, Brigadier 77 
Rothschild 259 
Rotterdam 49 
Rowan 208 

Roziere, Monsieur de 89 
Ruffec 90, 91, 94, 100 
Rugeleys Mills 225 
Rutherford 213, 214 
Rut^edge, Governor 1 98, 199 
Saarfeld, General 35 
Salem 73 

Salisbury, 198, 208 
Salles, de, General 31 
Salm-Salm, regiment 244 
Santee, river 225 
Sar de Gand 6 
Saratoga 152, 204 
Sartiges, de 97 
Sartines, Sec. of War 81, 82, 

84 
Saunders' creek 226 
Savannah 73, 180, 190, 191, 213 
Saxe, Marshal of 5, 6, 11, 23, 

223, 241 
Schamyl 94 



Schaumburg-Lippe,William, Count 

of 38, 39 
Schenectady, 153 
Schiller 255 

Schuyler, General 149, 152, 203 
Schuylkill 125, 126, 134 
Scotch Plains 186 
St. Sebastian, Bay 104 
Segur 19 
Seine, ship 88 
Seitz, Margarethe 1 
Seven, Kloster 26 
Shanghai 258 
Sharon 162 

Shelburne, Minister 45 
Sickingen, 20 
Signard, Elise 245 
Smallwood, General 179, 18.5, 

230, 232, 234, 235, 236 
Smith, Cove 164,165,171,172,174 
Solms Braunfels, Princess of 32 
Solms Ilohensolms, Princess of 32 
Solms Lich, Prince of 32 
Sonneville, de 91 
Soubise, Prince of 25, 26, .27, 30, 

31, 35, 45, 176 
Sparks, Jared 101, 108 
Springfield 186 
Stark, General 153 
Staten Island 162, 181 ,185, 186, 187 
Steuben, General 111, 157, 174, 

179, 181, 185, 243 
Stevens, General 214, 220, 221, 

227, 228, 230, 231, 232 
Stirling, Lord 157, 159 
Stockholm 82 
Stony Point 171, 173, 174, 175, 

177, 178 
Stormond, Lord 86, 88, 89, 90,101 



INDEX. 



337 



Strassburg 84 

Suedois, Royal, regiment 25 

Sullivan, General 111, 116, 135 

Sumter 220, 221, 225 

Swedes ford 136 

Tailor's ferry 198 

Tarleton 221, 229, 234, 235 

Tesse, Countess de 104 

Thatcher 224 

Ticonderoga 82, 126, 127 

Toulon 104, 107 

Townsend, Charles 44 

Trevisani, de 39 

Troup, Eobert 155 

Turgot 82, 83 

Tuscarora 246 

Valcroissant, de, Brigadier 78 

Yalette,dela, Army commissary 30 

Yalfort, Colonel 108, 117, 118, 

127, 128, 130 
Yalley Forge 136, 137, 144, 145, 

148, 149, 157, 159, 160, 180, 183 
Yarmira 133 

Yaudiere, Raymond Marquis de 245 
Yellinghausen, battle of 30 
Yergennes, Count de 73, 76, 81, 

82, 83, 84, 89, 102 
Yerplanks Point 171, 173 
Yersailles 16, 18, 19, 20, 40, 46, 

68, 74, 76, 80, 253 
Yictoire, ship 101, 102, 104, 108, 

109, 117, 260 
Yienna 39 
Yiomenil 76 
Yirginia 110, 162, 184, 190, 191, 

197, 198, 199, 200, 205, 206, 219, 

220, 221, 222, 230, 232, 235 
Yogue, de, General 31, 35 
Yrigny, de, Captain 108, 130 



\^rilliere, Minister 76, 77, 78 

Warsaw 76 

Washaw 222 

Washington, General 94, 108, 
121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 
127, 128, 133, 137, 144, 145, 
148, 149, 150, 156, 157, 158, 
160, 161, 162, 163, 169, 171, 
173, 177, 179, 180, 185, 186, 
188, 191, 192, 194, 195, 203, 
237, 238, 248, 249, 250 

Washington, Colonel 205 

Wateree 225 

Waxhaw 219 

Wayne, General 126, 173, 174 

Webster, Lieut. Col. 226, 229, 331 

Westfield 186 

West Haven 

West India, sea 1 79 

West Indies 180, 190 

West Point 164,165,17i;i77,179, 

Wetterau 26, 32 [182 

Weymouth, Yiscomte 86 

White, Colonel 205, 206 

Whitemarsh 133 

Whitemarsh creek 119 

White Plains 161, 162 

Wilcox's Mills 200, 202 

Wilhelmsthal 31 

Wilkinson, Colonel 149 

Williams, Colonel 207, 208, 215, 
216,217,222,227,228,231,233 

Wilmington, battle of 123,124, 
125, 128, 199 

Wood creek 152 

Woolford 220, 221 

Wurmser, General 35 

Yadkin, 

Ypres 5 



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